Fireflies
by theminorcatastrophe
Summary: After her dad and brother pass away Sakura is sent to live her grandmother 'in the middle of nowhere'. In the beginning she hates it, but when she gets a job at a local diner she begins to appreciate life once more. SxS ExT
1. Welcome to Hell

**Summary: **

**Sakura Kinomoto never fit in. After her brother and father die in a tragic car accident, she is sent to live with her grandmother. At first Sakura hates the quaint, country town- but after accidentally getting a job at the local diner, she begins to make friends for the first time and learns to appreciate life for the little things. **

**Chapter 1: Welcome to Hell**

My name is Sakura Kinomoto. Welcome to my personal hell.

"Well, hopefully things will be good for you in Tomoeda," My ex-neighbour said as she patted my shoulder awkwardly, walking along the train platform. I looked at her hand and sniffled. She sighed. "It's going to be okay, I promise."

I was sick of hearing that. What gave her the right to tell me it was going to be okay? She didn't know. I understood she didn't mean anything by it; nobody _really _meant anything.

"Living with your grandmother in Tomoeda will be the perfect change of scenery." Another sentence that'd she'd repeated too many times. I cringed every time the 's' sound of scenery rolled off of her tongue. _Shut up, _I thought.

After the accident our neighbour Monoke, took me in. I think she felt as if it was her responsibility because nobody else wanted me (or was there to want me). I could tell she didn't really want to because she was never exactly affectionate towards me. It wasn't as if I was expecting her to read me a bedtime story every night but there was nothing worse than empty 'have a nice day' s and 'good night's. And now, when she was trying to offer some support it was really awkward.

I stayed silent as she checked her watch. She mumbled something about how it was time for me to go and that when I get to my grandmother's place I should call her. I contemplated but decided it was unnecessary.

The train pulled into the station and my bags were packed aboard. I hugged Monoke goodbye, knowing that it would probably be the last time I would see her. It wasn't like either of us cared except we knew there was an expectation of intimacy. I stayed cold and silent- the same way I'd been the past few weeks.

When I got to my seat I looked out the window and watched all of the people wave to their departing relatives and it only made me realize so much more just how alone I was. I'd always denied it but as I watched the only living person who I was remotely acquainted with walk away the painful stab of emotion struck.

Slowly but surely tears slipped down my cheeks.

It hadn't always been like this.

My first real memory is from when I was five, and I got to see Tokyo Tower for the first time. In it I am wearing a white sundress and a hat too big for my head. I am sitting on top of my father's shoulders. My mother and brother, Toya, aren't far... they are standing close as we all stared at the entity that was Tokyo Tower.

It was really, really sunny but there was a soft breeze. I can still see my mother's long, raven hair flowing through the wind and I can still hear Toya's laugh.

I remember dropping ice cream on my mom's new dress and being terrified that she would get angry. Of course she didn't, she just wiped it off and bought me a new one.

The rest of my early memories consist of my family doing everything together. We were happy. Our apartment was falling apart from the inside and my clothes were second hand, but we were happy. Dad said that happiness was all that mattered.

It switches to a blur the winter I turned seven. That was when my mom got sick. I don't remember anything at all, but I do know that was when we were the hungriest because we had to pay numerous hospital bills. Toya also became my guardian. He took care of me when our parents couldn't- and the moment my mother passed he made it a personal goal to help my dad every way he could. When he turned sixteen and was eligible for a part-time job, he didn't just get one. He got _every _one.

We'd struggled a lot with money, which meant we'd lost our apartment one month after my mom left us. And then another six months later we lost another. It was a vicious cycle, we were always moving.

With all of the moving around, I'd never really gotten time to make friends, let alone learn how to make friends. I became quite shy around people and got into the habit of stuttering around new ones. With my non-existent social skills, I'd pretty much only find friends in my family- the only ones who didn't laugh at me.

We finally got on track when I turned 14, when my dad got promoted and we were in our middle-of-the-city apartment permanently. It'd been my favourite apartment to date, because I got my own bedroom and the neighbour, Monoke (sound familiar?) was actually really nice.

We'd been in our apartment for two years when they got in the accident.

One afternoon I came home to find a note pinned on the fridge- informing me they'd gone out for groceries. I'd waited for my dad and Toya for three hours until the phone rang. They were walking along the sidewalk when a eighteen-wheeler lost control...

I went into a blank after that, and I don't remember the next few hours. From what I've been told, Monoke had came over with the intention of stealing some of our baking goods (like usual) and found me passed out in the bathroom.

After that Monoke took me in for the time being. During my short yet painful stay at her apartment I'll admit I felt a little crazy. I cut off my waist-length hair to above my shoulders and stopped speaking. Nothing felt real. How was I even alive?

The authorities and lawyers searched for some time until they finally found my grandmother.

This was what brought me here. Sitting in a train on the way to small-town Tomoeda to live with a woman who I've never conversed with in my life. She seemed eager that she actually had a granddaughter, because her own daughter had run out on her when she turned eighteen and hadn't heard from her since. (She didn't even know she was dead).

I knew Tomoeda wouldn't make me happy, regardless of what Monoke preached. I knew that I would never make friends and that I would never be close to my grandmother like I was with my dad or my brother.

As I sat on the train that morning, I felt a strange unease. This was unlike my usual numbness. What was to become of me? My entire family was dead when I felt that I should be.

When the train pulled into a town outside of Tomoeda several hours later there was only one person waiting. He was a good-looking Chinese guy about my age. He looked impatient and was patting his foot on the platform and was fiddling with car keys. I sighed. My lovely grandmother appeared to have forgotten me.

I stepped on the platform and began to squint. The late-June afternoon sun burned bright and hot, and I automatically remembered what Monoke told me about here. This place was close to a beach.

I sat down at the nearest bench. My stomach churned and my forehead sweat. It was going to be a painful wait for this old woman.

The Chinese guy saw me and began to speak. "Are you Hanako's granddaughter?" He grumbled and stepped towards me. I flinched. _What the hell? _

This guy obviously wasn't in a mood to waste time. I nodded and he raised an eyebrow. "Sakura, right?" I nodded again.

"Hanako sent me to get you. I'm Syaoran Li." He didn't make any gesture of acquaintance; there was no handshake or anything. "Those yours?" he said, pointing at my bags which had been placed on the platform by what I can only assume a train worker. I nodded again and he picked them up with ease. I watched in amazement- those things were super heavy. He was strong.

"This way," he said and I noticed that I'd been standing there a few moments because he was already many paces ahead. I trotted after him.

He approached an old pickup truck. He tossed my stuff into the box and got up front. I opened the door for myself and got in the front seat.

The seats smelt like sweat; I wrinkled my nose. He seemed to acknowledge this and rolled down the windows. The sun busted onto my face and I squinted again. I was not impressed.

"You're never pleased, are you?" he mumbled annoyingly. I assumed this was a rhetorical question because I certainly didn't want to answer it. I didn't.

Syaoran drove towards the parking lot exit and I settled into my seat. The road was smooth and I was tempted to sleep. He didn't try to talk to me as we drove which I was perfectly content with.

After about a thirty minutes of highway we turned onto an exit that lead us into the town. This was when I sat up and began looking around. Old, big country style houses were everywhere and the town smelt like a barbeque. My stomach growled as we drove through the middle of town square.

We turned right at the intersection and the houses started stretching farther apart. We passed by a small, one-level white building which had a big neon sign that said 'FOOD- TAKE OUT OR SIT IN'. I could smell hamburgers, french fries and pure, intoxicating grease coming from there. I almost fainted with delight.

I saw Syaoran mouth something that resembled along the lines of "Almost there," but he never actually spoke. We then turned onto a dirt road and passed a few more houses- you could see glimpses of ocean water behind them.

We drove to the very end of the road and pulled into the last house on the left. It was a traditional western-style home, with three levels and pillars holding up the deck. The original white color of it had faded into a dirty ivory and you could see paint chipping off the window shutters. Just around the porch that ran the entire length of the house, after the backyard, the beach appeared and I could spot teenagers out in the water.

Syaoran honked the horn and I flinched out of surprise. It had been so quiet; my ears rang and I covered them. He looked at me funny as he turned the key and got out of the car. I followed suit.

He got my bags and pilled them on the front steps. He also took a gym bag out of the back which I hadn't noticed before, but was the obvious source of the sweaty scent. He placed it on top of my luggage. I could tell he was being a jerk on purpose, but what I didn't understand was why he was unloading _his _stuff at _my _grandmother's. I didn't have the guts to ask so I didn't.

Suddenly, the front door creaked open and a short, over weight woman with a cheeky smile waddled towards us. "Hey Hanako," Syaoran smiled. _Whoa, _I thought. _He smiles. _

Hanako patted Syaoran's shoulder and thanked him for picking me up. Then she turned to me and gave me the tightest hug I'd ever had. I squealed with pain and I could almost feel my pelvis snap (It didn't, though).

"Oh, Sakura! I'm so excited to meet you, oh my goodness you look just like your mother," she said. She turned to Syaoran. "Doesn't she?" He shrugged. "I'm going to take these to her room, and then I have the night shift for work tonight so I have to get going," Syaoran said casually. He was obviously very comfortable around her.

"Okay! Tell Tomoyo I said hi!" Hanako shouted inside the house and he moaned an acknowledgement. _Tomoyo must be his girlfriend, _I thought. Hanako turned back to me and looked into my eyes. There was one thing we had in common. We had the same big green eyes.

Syaoran left the house and skipped past us. "I hope you have a good time here," he mumbled to me shyly before he jumped inside his old pickup and pulled out of the driveway. I was rather surprised by his comment- I just assumed he didn't care. Or perhaps he was trying to impress Hanako, which was odd since she was an old lady. I then noticed she'd been rambling on.

"Sakura… it's okay if I call you Sakura, right? It's so wonderful to be here with you, we're going to be such great girlfriends! I can't wait for you to meet everybody here; oh they'll just love you! They all loved your mother, but then of course she ran off with your dad when she met him," Hanako talked until she realized she mentioned my dead parents. She stared at me as if she'd done the worse thing in the world.

"It's okay," I spoke for the first time that day. I was almost startled by the sound of my own voice, it was like a strangers. Hanako nodded and led me inside.

As I walked up the steps behind her, the first thing I noticed about the inside of the house was that she had every single light on. It was unnecessarily bright. I wondered why she kept them all on while the sun was out-which was bright enough to light up the whole place ten times over.

I heard the TV coming from the living room, which was playing some sort of soap opera. I looked into that direction and glanced around. All of the furniture was old fashioned and well-used. Hanako noticed this and began to rant about the program she was watching. I barely heard a word.

I nodded out of habit and all of a sudden I felt a rub of fur against my leg. I jumped and screamed, which resulted in me knocking into the wall and toppling over. On the floor I looked into the eyes of an extremely fat miniature schnauzer.

Hanako laughed and picked up the dog. She patted his head and said "Bad Wolfie! Don't scare Sakura!" I stood up brushed my butt off.

"He can be so bad sometimes," Hanako said. "Truth be told I don't know what I would do without him though. He's my baby," She explained. I petted the dogs head and he licked my thumb.

"I wouldn't know what to do without Syaoran either," I looked up at this. "The guy who picked me up?" I pretended as if I didn't know his name. I didn't want to seem weird.

"Mhm. If he didn't live in the basement, I wouldn't have anyone to open jars for me or build campfires. Speaking of which, do you like marshmallows? I just love s'mores," "Syaoran lives downstairs?!" I interrupted her.

"Oh yes! I forget he's there half the time, he's not a bother. Don't worry. Though I'm sure you wouldn't. He's cute, eh? He's about a year older than you are, turns 17 next month." Hanako raised her eyebrows. I was a little creeped out by this. _Yay, _I thought. _My grandma's a perv. _

"That's nice…" I mumbled, trying to show my non-interest. She then re-began her babbling about marshmallows, and other foods. She would ask me if I liked certain foods and I would nod absent mindedly, taking in the essence of my new home.

She led us to the kitchen, where she decided that she was going to make me a fabulous dinner because it was my first night there. She opened the fridge and pursed her lips. "What?" I asked. This was the most talking I'd done in two weeks. I guess Hanako had that effect on people.

"There's nothing good! I'm craving something junky, like fish and chips but I don't have any…" Hanako mumbled annoyed. She then jumped and grinned at me.

Surprised, I asked her what she was grinning at. "I know! We'll get Rush Hour," she said. "You've seen it; it's that cute little diner you passed by before you turned onto the road." I all of a sudden remember the white building with the neon sign and the greasy scent.

I nodded with excitement- I was craving a hamburger. "Alright! But I can't go if you do," she said. "I only have one bike and Syaoran took the car, so you'll have to go get the food and bring it back if that's alright. Or I can,"

"It's alright, I can." I protested, but gulped with nerves. I'd just have to find my way and place an order. The former was the one that freaked me out. My first impression on the people here- and knowing me I'd probably embarrass myself.

"Okay Sakura, here I'll write down our order and then you can just tell them and bring it back," Hanako trotted to a stand that held the phone and grabbed a scrap of paper and pen.

I looked out the window and watched the sunlight twinkle on the ocean water as she wrote down the order. I sighed and knew my summer was just beginning.

**End of Chapter 1. **

**Waaaaaah! New story. I really, really, really like this idea. It's loosely based on "Keeping the Moon" by Sarah Dessen, it's really good so you should go read it! **

**But review the story first! And favourite. And alert. Pleasssse! **

**Signing off, xoxox**

**theminorcatastrophe**

****EDIT: Haha, fixed the spelling mistakes. This story is FUCKING OLD. **


	2. Rush Hour Bar and Grill

**Summary: **

**Sakura Kinomoto never fit in. And after Sakura's brother and father die in a tragic car accident, she is sent to live with her only family left-her eccentric grandmother who lives in the middle of nowhere. At first Sakura hates the quaint, country town- but after accidentally getting a job at the local diner, she begins to make friends for the first time and learns to appreciate life for the little things. **

**Chapter 2: Rush Hour Bar and Grill**

**- - - - -**

The Rush Hour Bar and Grill definitely did not meet up to its name. By the time I arrived there, it was about 6:30 PM and I would assume this would be rush hour- when everyone wants take out for dinner.

But when I walked in, the first thing I noticed that the place was deserted except for one greasy looking guy sitting at a table eating fries. The second thing I noticed was a bony Chinese girl with her hair in odango pigtails on the top of her head throwing a fit.

"I don't even know why I put up with this place! I've basically lived in this grill since I was ten, and even then I didn't want a job here! Yet I still got one, and look at me now! Stupid, drunk perverts come in hitting on us! I hate it!" She was screaming at another girl, a pretty wavy-haired one with grey eyes.

"I understand Meilin but you just have to deal with it," the wavy-haired one said. She was standing by the counter, pushing napkins into the dispensers. The Chinese one- Meilin- was waving her hands in the air like a crazy person.

"Mark my words, the next time that happens I'm going to throw a punch! Or two! Or three!" said Meilin. She started pacing around while the wavy-haired girl just smiled knowingly.

She turned from the napkins and saw me. She smiled. "Can I help you?"

"I-I…" I stuttered. _Way to go Sakura, now she probably thinks you have a speech impediment, _I imagined. "I need to order takeout!" I blurted out quickly.

"Sure, here's a menu," She pulled one out from under the counter. Meilin noticed me now, as she impatiently tapped her foot waiting for the other girl's attention again.

The wavy-haired girl didn't or pretended not to notice. Meilin rolled her eyes and stepped out from behind the counter, and walked over to the greasy guy at the table. My eyes left the menu and watched her.

She took the guys plate and handed him a check. As she was walking away, he slapped her butt. I saw her twitch and knew fire was coming. "You creep!" Meilin shouted, and turned and slapped the guy in the face.

He got up, threw what looked like a twenty dollar bill at her, and left. Meilin then laughed. "That was great! He gave me like a 16 dollar tip, Hahaha!"

I shuffled my feet and then went back to scanning the menu. It was all of the good western stuff- hamburgers, French fries, seafood. And the traditional Japanese classics like sushi were there. My mouth was already watering.

I could hear the grill sizzling further behind the counter and the greasy smell was overwhelming. I needed food.

"I'll have a fish and chips, along with a cheeseburger and fries." I blurted. This seemed to be happening a lot lately. The wavy-haired girl nodded, writing it on a note pad. "That all?" She asked and I nodded.

Meilin then appeared next to her, reading the order over her shoulder. She then gave me a real look and her nose wrinkled in obvious disgust. _So much for modesty, _I thought.

I couldn't really blame her- I wasn't looking my best. My short hair was a mess, and my shorts and t-shirt weren't the most presentable. I hadn't had a chance to change since the train ride.

The wavy-haired girl gave Meilin a look and placed my order on a spindle behind her and called out "Order up!" behind her. All of a sudden, obviously coming from the kitchen in the back, was Syaoran Li.

He took the order, and looked at me. He wasn't sporting his attire from before- now he wore a grease-ridden white t-shirt and an apron around his waste. He must've been the cook, because he didn't look like a waiter.

"You." He acknowledged my presence and then the wavy-haired girl and Meilin had a sudden interest. I looked at my feet as they asked him about me.

"Who's she Syaoran? How do you know her?!" Meilin squeaked, obvious jealously clogging up her throat. "Li?" the wavy-haired girl said.

"She's uh," Syaoran said. "She's Hanako's granddaughter." The wavy-haired girl's mouth formed an 'O' shape and her eyes began to glitter. "You mean she's Nadeshiko's daughter?!?" Syaoran nodded.

"Oh my gosh! You're my cousin!" she exclaimed. I twitched as leaned closer to me. "I'm Tomoyo Daidouji, and our mothers were cousins! This makes us related! I can't believe I didn't recognize you," Tomoyo ran out from behind the counter and glomped on top of me. _So this is Tomoyo, _I thought. _Syaoran's girlfriend._

"I can," Meilin spat out. Tomoyo turned and looked at her in confusion. Syaoran sighed, annoyed, and trotted back to the kitchen out of sight. "Her mother was a famous beauty around here. She obviously isn't that," Meilin said.

Stab. That's what it felt like. Even though I was used to all of the rude comments from everybody in Tokyo about me, whenever I meet a new person and they insult me it hurts about ten times worse.

"Meilin! What are you talking about! She's adorable! I mean, she just would have to fix that hair cut a bit, it's terribly uneven, but other than that-" Tomoyo said, when suddenly another person appeared from out of the kitchen.

This boy was freakishly tall and really skinny. Unlike Syaoran who was rather muscular, this guy was kind of scrawny and slouched. He had sleek, shiny navy hair and wore glasses. His eyes were an icy blue. He was wearing the same outfit as Syaoran, so he obviously was the other cook.

"What's going on out here?" he asked in a deep voice. "Meilin's being a bitch to people again!" Tomoyo shouted and I heard Syaoran's laugh from back in the kitchen.

"Meilin, stop being a bitch to the customer. He'll fire you. Again." Meilin snorted at the boy's comment and walked off. I almost asked who 'he' was but decided not too. She stepped outside, and from the windows I could see her pull out a cigarette from her pocket and light it on fire.

"I still don't know why she does that nasty habit," Tomoyo commented, to nobody in particular. The guy shrugged and stepped back into the kitchen. "He's Eriol by the way," Tomoyo said to me.

I leaned over the counter slightly and caught a glimpse of him pulling fries out of the deep fat fryer. I nodded. "What's you're name, anyways?" Tomoyo asked me. "…S… Sa" I mumbled. I immediately felt helpless.

"You're name is Sa?" She raised an eyebrow in question. "No," I managed. "My name is Sakura."

"Cherry blossoms! Those are so pretty, I just wish we had more here. All we have is water," Tomoyo snorted at this and Meilin walked back inside. As she brushed past me she nudged me and I had to catch my balance. Tomoyo roller her eyes at this.

Suddenly, Syaoran appeared and handed me a bag of food. I nodded thanks to him and handed the money Hanako had given me to Tomoyo. She took it and smiled at me as she put it in the cash register. She gave me my change and began to speak.

"We should hang out sometime when I'm off, I live just across the street from Hanako," she said and my eyes widened. Someone wanted to hang out with me?

"You've got to be kidding," Meilin took the words right out of my mouth. But in a much harsher way. I looked down at my feet and Tomoyo shouted. "Meilin, stop being rude to Sakura, apologize right now!"

But before she could, I was already gone.

- - - - -

I didn't cry or anything as I cycled back to Hanako's house. Back on the train, I promised myself that I would be as strong as I could for my dad and Toya- and that I wouldn't cry anymore.

I choked down a sob and watched the sun go down over the water across the road. Swirls of yellow and orange spread across the sky. I stopped and took in the scenery for a moment to stop Meilin's comments from sinking in.

It wasn't like it was the first time I'd been called ugly- that used to happen on a daily basis. I'd been called much worse names before.

_Bitch! Slut! Butter face! _I grazed my face with my cheek on that last one. I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply. Then suddenly I was overtaken with anger. My face wasn't even greasy!

I kicked over Hanako's beat up old bike and sniffled. I never got angry, even before dad and Toya left. Usually I'd just cry a little and go back to normal.

I felt almost as if I wore a permanent 'Kick Me!' sign where ever I went. As the displeasure creeped through my body I kicked Hanako's bike about seven more times- I thought it deserved to feel how I felt everyday. My foot was starting to hurt when I finally decided to stop.

_You're such a weakling Sakura, _I thought to myself. _You don't even know this girl; you get upset over the littlest things. I bet you won't even have to look at that Meilin girl ever again. _But I was wrong- Meilin looked about my age, and I knew there was only one high school in this place.

I then thought of my father and brother and fell to the ground. I breathed in and out, trying to catch a glimpse of the last time I was happy with them. Haunting memories from their funeral crept back into me and I began sobbing hysterically. I cried and cried for about ten minutes before I caught a hold of myself.

I picked up the bike and hopped on, grabbed the bag of food I'd thrown at the ground and cycled back all the way to the dirt road, and back to Hanako's house.

- - - - -

Hanako was sitting in front of the TV when I got inside. She was watching that soap opera again- only this time she'd changed from her outfit to a long flannel pyjama dress.

"Saku?" she called out. _Great. A nickname, _I hated nicknames. Toya always called me monster (in a non malicious way) and it drove me crazy.

"Yes," I said. "Did you like it? Did you meet Tomoyo? What took so long?" she asked and I nodded. I didn't want to answer her last question so I just went onto the topic of Tomoyo. "She was very….happy." I tried to find the right word for her. Happy seemed to fit.

One thing I didn't understand was how she could like Syaoran. They were polar opposites. She was completely eccentric and bubbly and he was just…cold. _I guess opposites do attract, _I pondered.

I passed her food to her; she opened the cardboard box quickly and grinned. She popped a French fry in her mouth immediately. She moaned with pleasure and my nose wrinkled a bit.

"What did you get?" she asked. "Just a burger and fries." I put her change on the coffee table, where an empty bag of potato chips remained. "Thanks," she said and took a bite of her fish.

"Sit down and eat girl! Look, the couple just got into a fight!" she pointed towards the television and I watched for a second. A skinny girl with a pixie haircut was throwing things at a gorgeous guy.

"Actually, I'm not that hungry." I said. This was when Wolfie ran into the room and began nudging Hanako's foot for food. She kicked him away lightly and to me she said, "But you must be starving!"

I felt a pang of hunger in my stomach and sighed. I sat on the floor, grabbed my burger and took a bite. It was unbelievably good.

"Syaoran's a good cook, huh?" Hanako smiled. I nodded in surprise. "One of his many talents." she grinned some more and scarfed down some more fries.

"There…" I began and she looked up. "There was another cook too," I mentioned as casually as possible. She nodded. "Oh yes, Eriol's a looker too. Just turned eighteen. His dad owns the grill; he's supposed to take up the family business soon." Then I realized when he said 'he'll fire you' to Meilin he must've meant his dad.

"If you saw him then you must've saw Meilin too," she said and I swallowed down hard. "That girl can be very rude, but I've heard she has a nice side." I was trying to show my disinterest, but Hanako kept on going. "She moved here with Syaoran when they were ten, their cousins." Whoa. That was new.

"How come she doesn't live downstairs too?" I asked, now interested. Hanako's eyebrows narrowed and I knew this must've been something private. "I don't believe I am the one who should explain that," she mumbled quietly and finished off her second piece of fish.

"Okay." I said and finished my burger. I then stood. "What's wrong, Saku?" Hanako asked. "Oh, I think I'm just going to turn in, I'm really tired." I said and then turned to go find my bedroom.

"Are you sure nothing's wrong?" she called out after me. I looked behind me at her questioning eyes. I thought of my brother and dad, of the train ride here, of Syaoran, and of that Meilin girl and her odango hair. _No, _I thought. "Yes. Goodnight,"

She settled back into the couch and Wolfie jumped up beside her. I found my room upstairs and flickered on the light.

Inside, I found my bags sitting neatly on my bed. I remembered Syaoran bringing them in. I then turned left and saw the dresser and the big mirror above it.

I approached the mirror and stared at myself. I picked at my face. My eyes were darkened with fatigue and my hair was wind blown from the bike ride. My cut-off jean shorts were really torn and I sighed as I stripped them off.

I noticed it was too hot to change into actual pyjamas so I remained in my underwear and t-shirt. I hustled as I took my luggage off of my bed and sighed. I then crawled under the sheets and began crying tears that I promised myself I wouldn't let out.

- - - - -

According to the alarm clock on the nightstand, when Hanako woke me up it was past midnight.

"Saku!" she called out behind my door. "You have company," she said. I then sat up. Was this a dream?

I then pulled my shorts back on quickly and opened the door. She smiled and pointed in the direction of the steps. I trotted, spacey from sleep that felt like I'd been doing forever. This had to be a joke- I'd never gotten company when I lived in Tokyo. What had changed?

_Everything changed, _I reminded myself. I then started down the stairs and squinted at all of the lights that Hanako still had on. Her electrical bill had to be crazy.

When I got to the bottom and looked down towards the door, my heart stopped. What on earth was she doing here?!

"Hi." Meilin said, not looking at me. She had her arms crossed and her foot was tapping. "I need to say something." I hesitated, thinking of all of the mean things she could say to me now. I must've looked insane.

I don't know why but I said "Okay," and she let her arms down. She then turned out the door and went onto the porch. She must've assumed I would follow her- and I did.

Up close she was really pretty, her eyes- which you would assume were brown- we're actually a burgundy/red color. Her pale skin glistened with the moonlight and somehow I knew that with her gorgeousness, it would be that much easier to dislike her.

Neither of us had said anything for a few seconds when she finally decided to speak. "I'm _sorry, _okay?" She'd said it defensively and loud, as if she intended for somebody else to hear. But nobody was in sight.

I just looked at her. "What else do you want?" she called out to the shadows. "Meilin," Tomoyo then walked out from behind a tree. Her face was cold- an expression I'd never thought she'd bear.

"You know that's not how we discussed it." she said. "Say it like you mean it."

"I don't want too-" Meilin snapped. "Say it now!" Tomoyo shouted.

Meilin turned back to look at me and grabbed a piece of her pigtail and twirled it around her finger. "I'm sorry about what I said about you're hair. I tend to be very critical of new things." Tomoyo then sighed, relieved.

"I was being rude. I understand if you hate me." Meilin then looked at Tomoyo as if to say 'That good enough?' "But?" Tomoyo prompted. "But I hope you can forgive me." Meilin grumbled.

Tomoyo grinned and looked at me. I took the hint. "It's fine," I said in a voice that sounded almost like a whisper. "Alright." Meilin said and trotted off the steps.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Tomoyo." She called out to her as she began to walk up the road. Tomoyo nodded absent mindedly and then looked up at me.

"So! As I was saying before you left the grill, we should hang out sometime! I'd love to show you around."

"That'd be wonderful!" It was Hanako, who'd been obviously eaves-dropping from inside.

"Great!" Tomoyo said, not even waiting for my response. "How about tomorrow? I get off work at two, so then we can have the afternoon. Just come by," Tomoyo said. "Hang out with you?" I verified.

"Yes silly!" she said. "You and Syaoran?" I questioned. This made her confused. "What? Why would we hang out with him?" she asked. "Oh I thought he was you're…" I began. "My what?"

"You're boyfriend." I said. _This is awkward, _I thought. She then laughed a laugh that sounded similar to Santa Claus on helium. "No! Syaoran isn't my boyfriend, he isn't my type. He's just a good friend. Plus Meilin would kill me," she waved her hands in a crossing motion. "Their cousins but she's had a major crush on him since they were little. Actually, I think she's a bit jealous that you're basically living together."

_Not really, _I thought. We may have been in the same house but he'd probably only said about five sentences to me.

We then agreed we would meet at Rush Hour at two.

She then ran across the street to a one-level house and ran inside. I stood there, shocked.

I looked up into the sky and pondered. _It's my first day…night, here and I have plans. This is so weird, _I thought.

Wolfie's countless barking began and I knew I would have to come inside before neighbours woke up. I trotted back up the stairs and before I fell back asleep- a small smile fell onto my face instead of tears.

- - - - -

**End of Chapter 2. **


	3. Us and Them

**Chapter 3: Us and Them**

**- - - - -**

The next morning I woke up early to the sound of bacon sizzling on the frying pan. The clock said it was 8 AM- my nose tinkled with the delight of the smell of breakfast and I jumped out of bed. I opened the big suitcase on the floor, and pulled out a pair of shorts, a tank top and a zip-up sweater.

I changed my clothes the ran out of the room. I went down the steps, turned the corner and found the kitchen. In it, I'd expected to find Hanako cooking. I didn't.

A different person entirely greeted me. "Uh... hey," Syaoran said, turning away from the frying pan on the stove. "…hi." I spoke my first words to him. _This is _really_ awkward, _I thought.

"Would you…" he said. He seemed almost as nervous as me. "Would you like some?" he asked and I nodded. He then took out two small plates from the cupboard and placed them on the counter.

"How about eggs?" he asked and I nodded. I sat down at the kitchen table and twiddled my fingers quietly.

"Do… you not have a kitchen in the basement?" I said, and realized just how rude that sounded. _Dammit, _I thought.

He didn't seem offended. "I have a hot plate and a microwave… but eggs in the microwave is just disgusting," he shivered and I tried to hide my tiny chuckle. Hanako usually doesn't wake up until late and she doesn't mind me using the kitchen."

It was weird watching Syaoran while he cooked- I'd only really spent time with him once before and he'd had such a cold demeanour. But while he cooked my eggs, he seemed much more at ease.

We didn't say another word until the food was ready, when he told me to come and serve myself. I stood and walked over to the stove, and picked up a plate. Syaoran opened the fridge and took out some orange juice.

He opened up the cupboard and took out two glasses and set them on the table. After that he took out two forks and placed them there too. He was still holding the orange juice when he noticed I was staring at him.

"Do you have a problem?" he asked, seemingly annoyed. Startled by his question, my arm holding the spatula slammed down on the counter out of reflex. I shook the counter, and Syaoran's plate started vibrating.

It'd budged its way off the counter quickly- and it was falling to the floor before I'd even noticed. But Syaoran did- and he'd dropped the orange juice and dived for the plate.

He caught it.

I stared in udder shock and embarrassment- I could feel my face getting hot and red. He stood up and turned to look at me. He handed me the plate with a look that just screamed 'you moron,' and turned to clean up the mess the orange juice carton had left.

I finished serving myself and didn't offer help- I somehow knew he didn't want it. I sat down and began to eat my breakfast. I stared at Syaoran wiping up the juice from the floor. His expression was hard and cold- he looked like he was concentrating on a big test for school or something.

After he was finished, he stood up. He looked at me, and then at the paper towels in his hand- and back at me. Then, he surprised me.

He started to laugh.

I must've been staring at him like he was insane- because when he looked at me he started laughing even more. Then, my insecurities kicked in.

"Stop laughing at me! What's so funny," I was trying to sound stern but I couldn't help noticing how different his laugh was compared to his personality. It was very loud- and full of life.

I stopped yelling and just began to stare at him. When he was laughing, it was almost as if I could see his stone exterior tumble down- and what I found was what seemed like a giddy 4-year-old trapped in a teenager's body.

He'd been laughing for a few minutes when Hanako came out in her pajamas- we'd obviously woken her up. She asked what all of the commotion was about but he didn't stop.

She then started to giggle too- and then two people I barely knew, where entwined in a laughing fit I didn't quite understand. When they stopped and Hanako asked if she could have some food, Syaoran told her to serve herself. After she was done that, there was none left.

"It's okay; I'll just eat at work." Syaoran said. "Early shift this morning?" Hanako asked. "Yeah, Ryou's got me this morning then Eriol this afternoon."

"Sakura's got plans with Tomoyo this afternoon," Hanako said quite matter-of-factly, sitting down at the table. I then looked at my feet. Why did she tell him that?

"It figures," Syaoran said quietly. I brushed a piece of my hair behind my ear. "So you'll probably pass by each other on you're way home." Hanako mentioned, her mouth full of egg.

"I see." Syaoran mumbled. He then said something that sounded along the lines of "Have fun," but I couldn't tell because he was so quiet.

He then told us he had to leave, and said goodbye. I heard his jeep pull out of the driveway with its loud engine grumbling along the way.

Myself and Hanako sat at the table quietly for a few moments. I looked out the window and saw the sky without a cloud in sight. I wondered how people how stand the heat here.

"I think he likes you," Hanako broke the silence. "What?!" I asked. Syaoran _did not _like me. Talk about awkward town. "Oh no, not like that!" Hanako protested. "I don't think he _likes _you, I mean he just likes you. He never usually warms up to people. Except for me and the gang at Rush Hour, he's cold to everyone."

"Oh," I said. _Maybe that was why he was so cold at the train station, _I thought. And now he was warming up to me? That's different.

"So you want to watch TV now? I'll just put our dishes in the sink. I think there's a City Slicker marathon on," Hanako smiled.

- - - - -

We watched the pixie-haired girl and the gorgeous guy fight and get back together at least twenty times before it was 1:30. I sighed.

"Oh! Look at the time!" Hanako said. "You should get going; Tomoyo is off in a half an hour. You can get lunch while you're at it too."

"Don't you want anything?" I asked. "Oh no! I'm too full from breakfast," _Breakfast was five hours ago, _I thought. _Even I'm hungry. _

"Okay then, here's some money-" She stood up and grabbed her purse from the coffee table. She took out a twenty and handed it to me.

"Just in case you girls go shopping or something, I know how Tomoyo can be."

After I left, I wondered just 'how' Tomoyo could be.

- - - - -

As I biked along the road, I could feel the sun beating down my back and the sweat dripping down my cheek. I sighed and pedalled to my destination, eager to spend the rest of my day _not _watching soap operas.

Truth be told, I was half expecting to show up at Rush Hour and find nobody. I half expected Tomoyo to have been kidding the whole time, in an effort to embarrass me. It wouldn't have been the first time that happened.

When I arrived at Rush Hour, the first thing I noticed was the small parking lot was much fuller than the last time I was there. There were at least 4 more cars (there was now 5) and a big RV. I figured it was lunch time, so everybody was running in for food.

I walked in on chaos. Every single table in the tiny diner was full- and one family had taken up two (I assumed this was the people with the RV). Kids were screaming, men were chanting and Tomoyo was freaking.

She was running around the restaurant, bussing tables and taking orders. Her hair was everywhere, and her apron was all twisted around. She made her way towards the table full of men who looked like construction workers, their hands filled with beer bottles.

"It's barely two o'clock! You're seriously getting drunk at this hour?!" Tomoyo yelled at the intoxicated men. "More beer!" One called, and soon the other 6 followed.

"Oh my fuck!" Tomoyo swore. She turned around and faced me. I gave a little wave. Just then, her frown turned into an immediate smile. "SAKURA! I AM SO GLAD YOU'RE HERE," she said. She grabbed my hand and dragged me across the floor.

She pulled me behind the counter and then began rustling around, searching for something. Placed in the corner, Rush Hour looked completely different from behind the counter. You could see every single table, and if I turned to my left I could see the kitchen, which was always hidden before.

I saw Syaoran flipping a burger, looking really sweaty and worn. He had on the same face he'd made when he was cooking my eggs that morning. At ease. "H-…Hi," I managed, but he didn't even flinch. With all of the grease sizzling back there, he must not have heard me.

Tomoyo found what she was looking for- she threw an apron at me. I caught it with ease, and then she began looking for something else. "What's this for?" I asked absent-mindedly, playing with the white fabric in my fingers.

"It's mandatory," she said, bending over, looking under the counter. "Mandatory for what?" I demanded. "For waitressing, duh." Tomoyo stood up. "What else?"

"I-I don't know," I said. "Why are you giving it to me?" Her eyebrows furrowed, looking at me as if I was stupid. I knew this look by heart- I'd gotten it often in Tokyo.

"Because you're going to help out today," Tomoyo nodded the way you nodded at a three year old when you were trying to get something through their head. "WHAT?" I bursted out.

"Oh come on Sakura, I need you!" Tomoyo shouted. "Look at this place!" I browsed around for a moment. The chaos hadn't toned down. "Meilin is late for her shift, and the place is full- I seriously need extra help, PLEASE, I am begging you!"

"More beer!" One of the drunken men called. "SHUT UP!" she shouted back. And to me she added, "Please? Just this once?"

The question 'What's there to lose?' popped into my head- and the words YOUR DIGNITY began flashing. Shrugging it off, I began to nod slowly. "Okay, I'll do it."

"Yes! Thank you!" Tomoyo said, and then jumped on top of me. I was still getting used to her hugs- I squeaked as she wrapped her arms around me.

- - - - -

I'd only ever had one job before that first day at Rush Hour- I was a babysitter for the apartment below us in Tokyo. Looking after kids was easy, just keep them occupied until their parents come home and then send them off to bed. Only feed them if necessary- and _never _give them sweets. You know, common sense stuff. Of course, as a babysitter- I'd never needed any sort of training.

But not now.

Being a waitress was a difficult job, Tomoyo had explained. The general idea of it was simple- take their order, place it on the spindle for one of the boys to pick up. After about 10 minutes, give food to customer, hand them check. Receive money via cash or debit and repeat. And so on.

But according to Tomoyo, the real secret was having great people skills. I'd winced at this theory- people skills was definitely something I wasn't blessed with. But she reassured me it was easy- just show up with a smile. And no matter how difficult they are- always remain calm.

I found this hard to believe, because in the two times I'd been to Rush Hour, I'd witnessed both Tomoyo and Meilin throw fits at customers. But waiting my first table, I immediately understood why the girls had cracked under pressure.

After Tomoyo had given me the basic overview, she sent me off to two harmless teenage girls- while she dealt with the family who took up two tables with screaming toddlers.

I approached the table sternly, with my chin up and my arms at my side. _"It's all about people skills. And confidence," _Tomoyo's words ran through my head as I tried to resemble someone with both confidence and people skills. I don't think it was working out too well, because when I got to the table the girls didn't even try to hide their laughter.

"Uhm… m-may I-I take you're order?" I spat out. The girls then roared with giggles again. I expected this sort of thing. But instead of just ignoring it, like I usually did, I felt a pang of sadness. Usually when this feeling would occur, I would've called up Toya and he would tell me everything was fine and that those girls were jealous. But Toya wasn't here for that.

They finally stopped laughing when the door swung open. "What the fuck is going on here?" An unfamiliar voice called.

I turned around and saw the tall, lanky boy from the day before. Eriol.

Somebody else was with him, someone I hadn't seen before. He was taller than Eriol by only a few inches, and they had the same hair color. He also wore glasses like him- except his eyes were a dark brown, unlike Eriol's icy blue.

When the man spoke, I recognized his voice as the one that swore. "Tomoyo? Where on earth is Meilin?!"

"Oh my gosh," came Tomoyo from across the room. She scrambled toward them, with a pot of coffee in her hand. "I don't even know! All of these people started showing up -it was like a mob- Syaoran and I didn't know what to do, then Sakura here showed up and I begged her to help out, oh I hope that's okay, I've tried to call Meilin's cell phone but she hasn't answered-" Tomoyo was doing that thing where she rambled on and on. But then, the man interrupted her.

"Who's Sakura?" he inquired. Tomoyo turned in my direction, then the other two followed suit. "You're that girl," Eriol stated, pointing at me. He didn't seem to know that it was rude to point. "From yesterday."

"Yeah, remember- Meilin was being a bitch to her. I told you who she was, she's Hanako's granddaughter." Tomoyo said and gestured towards me. The man's head tilted to the side, he looked as if he was pondering something.

He approached me hesitantly, as if I would run away at any moment. And from the way he was staring, I felt like I should.

When he was only inches away from me, he stretched out a hand. "Hello," he said. "I'm Ryou Hiiragizawa. I own Rush Hour, and I'm also Eriol's father." I blinked. I hadn't expected that- or for it too sound so welcoming, either.

"Hi," I said, not taking his hand. He got the hint and put it in his jean pocket. I stared up at him, noticing that he smelt like cigarettes and a meat factory- with a mix of ocean water. "I knew you're mother very well," He pointed out.

I still wasn't getting used to everyone knowing who my mother had been. A world in which my mother had lived felt like a distant fairytale, the memory of Tokyo Tower that I only recalled while dreaming.

"Infact we dated for quite some time." He said to no one in particular, staring off across the room. Wow. That threw me off. Just as I was about to ask more, one of the girls still sitting at the table moaned.

"Excuse me? Are you going to take my order or not?" I turned and looked at her. "Uh yes, I think-" "You're welcome to have a job here," Ryou said to me softly, almost in a whisper. I felt my eyebrows narrow.

I chose not to say anything, and then began to take the order of the girls. I heard Tomoyo shuffle across the room towards that same, kid-ridden family to hand them a check. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Eriol walk behind the counter and around the corner to the kitchen.

Ryou had just stood where he was, not moving. After I finished jotting down the order, I pivoted towards the counter. On the way, Tomoyo took my arm. "Just so you know, Ryou isn't normally this weird." I wasn't sure why she wanted me to know that- but I nodded in thanks, anyway.

When I placed the order on the spindle, I walked towards another table. I repeated what I'd done, walked to the counter, etc. Once I'd finally gotten into the routine of things, (I'll admit it was difficult handling a few plates of food at once) and people we're starting to clear out, Ryou finally moved from his spot and walked out of Rush Hour. I heard a car engine start and I glanced back as he drove out of sight. _Weird_, I thought.

At one point while I was picking up food from the counter, Syaoran walked out and saw me. "You work here now?" he asked. I just nodded and stalked away quickly, not really knowing how I would explain.

At some point while working, I'd forgotten all of my worries. I'd forgotten about people judging me as I waited on them, I'd forgotten how alone I was. Working with Tomoyo and the boys (even if they rarely came out of the kitchen) felt like we were a team- it was us against them. And I was finally apart of us for once. I don't think I knew it at the time- but I felt like I belonged. For once in my life.

Soon, Rush Hour was completely empty. Tomoyo and I sat down at a booth to take a break. After a few minutes she began babbling about what a natural I was, and me turning red at her compliments. Then the door swung open.

I turned and saw Meilin, a cigarette in hand, trotting inside as slow as a sloth.

"Where the hell have you been?!" Tomoyo shouted, and stood up. "You're two hours late!" I glanced at the clock on the wall- it read 5:07PM. Had I really been there that long?

"Stop screaming," Meilin said in a tone as slow as her movement. This only seemed to irritate Tomoyo more. "No I won't! I trusted you to be here, and you weren't! Then the place got extremely busy, Sakura here had to take over _your _job, while you wouldn't even answer your cell phone!"

"I said stop screaming!" Meilin shouted, this action forcing her to drop her cigarette on the floor. "Aw shit," she muttered, and stomped on it, putting it out. During this second of silence, Eriol and Syaoran walked out of the kitchen and out from the counter to find out what the commotion was about.

"And how many times have I told you to stop smoking!" Tomoyo shouted, and this time she looked as if she was almost in tears. I got the feeling that this wasn't the first time Meilin had let her down.

Eriol placed a hand on Tomoyo's shoulder. She looked up at him, and then looked down at her feet. Her face was suddenly filled with shame. "I- I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted like that," she muttered.

I stared at the four people in front of me. I really began to wonder about them. They'd all known each other a long time and had a history. From what I'd seen the past few days, they all fit together in an odd way.

Eriol had a sort of power over everyone. He knew how to calm people down- at least to an extent. Tomoyo was the optimist- but she was easily thrown off, but she always had her friends to help her out. Meilin was a free spirit, which a huge temper and rarely accepted new things. Tomoyo had said she had a nice side, which I did believe (sort of). She had a crush on Syaoran since they were kids.

Ah. Syaoran. The one I felt was the true mystery. Quiet and cold- at first he came off as a jerk. But at one point, I'd seen him without his guard up, and he truly seemed like a good hearted person. I wondered why he kept up a wall. But then again, his wall seemed to be non-exsistant around Hanako and the Rush Hour gang.

"It's fine." Meilin then said, and opened up her arms. Tomoyo fell into them. "I'm sorry I wasn't here for you," Meilin said. I blinked at her kindness. Now that was something I hadn't seen.

Syaoran and Eriol exchanged glances, and then Syaoran began to pat Meilin's head. She looked up at him with glistening eyes as if to say 'You aren't mad at me?' She then looked at Eriol and he gave her a smile. This little friendship square looked almost like something out of a movie.

I watched as they all stood together. Then it clicked.

I was never _really_ going to be apart of them. It would never be 'us'. It would always be 'them'- no matter what I led myself to believe. I just didn't have a place here. Those four people were a puzzle- an already pieced puzzle, which I understood I wouldn't be able to attach myself too, no matter how much I wanted too.

I then stood, brushed past them, and left without saying a word.

- - - - -


	4. Let's Play a Game

**SORRY FOR THE WAIT, HAHAHA. **

**I've been really busy with school and stuff… and I was just diagnosed with swine flu. The very definition of fuck my life. Anyways, hope you like it. Cuteness coming your way XD **

I felt stupid, as if I should've known I didn't belong. If I belonged anywhere, it was in heaven with my family. But I was too much of a coward to even consider that.

My feet strided forward, I struggled to keep them steady. My whole body was shaking.

_Stop being an idiot; you get too attached so easily Sakura, _I thought.

Twilight was spread across the sky, and as I stepped along the rocky sidewalk I watched the ocean perk out from behind the trees. Then, I saw a shiny light flying about twenty feet away from me. Many shiny lights.

They looked like floating speckles of glimmer, and when I listened closely I heard buzzing. I then knew I was watching fireflies. They circled around each other, zooming in a sphere motion.

At some point while I was entranced in the lights, I sat down. I began to forget everything that happened the past few days as I drifted away into a shimmery world filled with glowing specks.

The fireflies seemed happy, flying around in a circle, nothing in the world to care about. I rested my hand on chin, eyes flickering with each movement they made.

"Fireflies aren't even flies, you know." came a voice from behind me. I jumped, and felt a tickle creep up my neck. I hadn't even felt someone's presence.

I stood up and turned around, and saw the person I'd least expected. "They're actually winged beetles," Syaoran said, placing his hands in his pockets, casually striding in my direction. He didn't dare look at me- he watched the fireflies with intense concentration.

"And when they're born they don't have wings. They're only these slimy larvae's," Syaoran said non-chalantly. "Larvae?" I asked. "They're like glow worms." he explained.

"You seem to know a lot," I muttered, looking at my feet. "I always thought the fireflies were cool, ever since I moved here." he let a small grin slip, looking up at me, his bangs shadowing his eyes. I felt blood rush to my cheeks- maybe Hanako was right. Syaoran was really cute. Kind of gorgeous, infact.

"So…what the hell was that?" His voice was stern and cold now- back to his usual mood, the one I was used to. "Was what?" I inquired, having the little incident only minutes before completely slip my mind.

"You just hoped up and left, without a word. I can understand if you didn't want to stick around- Rush Hour isn't _that_ great- but I would've gotten paid first," He shrugged. My eyebrows furrowed. He didn't get why it.

"…why," I tried, but I barely spoke. "Hmm?" he mumbled. "Why did you follow me?" I asked. Syaoran had a way of getting things out of me- nobody had that sort of talent since Toya.

"We wanted out uniform back."

I felt my eyes get huge; he then threw his head back and laughed loudly. I looked at him confused. "I'm KIDDING!" He laughed some more and I grumbled. He then stopped and kicked some dirt.

"Well you just hopped up and left, I'm not going to lie and say everyone understood. Tomoyo thought something was wrong and wanted to find you, but a customer came in and she needed to take his table. Eriol said he'd take over the kitchen and Meilin…" he trailed off. "To put it bluntly, she didn't care." I nodded and understood. "So I said I'd come find you,"

I looked down and hid a tiny smile. He didn't seem to notice, because he asked what was wrong.

"I'm fine," I answered, looking back at his face. "No. I'm fine. You're not." I just stared at him. He seemed to lose patience. "Speak!" he said, and I jumped.

That was the first time anyone had asked me to speak directly in over six months.

"I just felt out of place." I stammered, and realized what I just confessed. I placed a hand against my mouth, thoughts buzzing around my head like the fireflies. What sort of power did this guy have over me?!

"What does that have to do anything?" Syaoran raised an eyebrow. I looked at him- he must've noticed the confusion in my face because his expression changed from sarcasm to something softer I couldn't quite place.

"I understand how you feel." I found that hard to believe- how could he feel out of place? "I can't even imagine what you're going through with you're family. But I do know what it feels like to be in a new town, feeling vulnerable and weak. And I do understand what it's like to feel like the total outcast and feel like everyone's out to get you," he said and gave me a smile that I was sure would melt any girl's heart in a second.

"But I got over it." he said, and then approached me. Up close, I'd forgotten how tall he was. I must've only reached his shoulder. I looked up at him and he patted my head.

I choked- only Toya used to do that. I pushed him away quickly, and tried to catch my breath. After I did, I noticed he was froze and staring at me.

"Okay," he registered I was uncomfortable, but didn't ask.

We stood there, frozen for a moment until he spoke.

"So, I guess we'll walk home then." he said and then brushed past me. I turned to look at him. "What about your jeep?" I asked.

"We're already half way home- plus I don't want to walk back and get my keys," He slouched and made a 'Blah' look. I never thought he would be the lazy type.

"But what about your shift?" I asked and he chuckled. "That was finished over three hours ago. They can handle it- I don't think anybody else plans on popping in there anytime soon; they're about done for the day."

I nodded, and then trailed after him.

- - - - -

I'd never noticed it before- but when Syaoran Li wasn't in a hurry he walked like a sloth. He took big steps, but it took about 10 seconds for him to finish one. His tall body sort of made a jumping motion as he walked- as if he was bopping to a song.

I tried to refrain from laughing at his posture as we shuffled along.

Before I'd only made the trip on a bicycle- and even then the trip to Rush Hour and back home was kind of long. And now with Syaoran's slow steps- I had a feeling we'd be walking at least a half an hour.

Usually silence made me comfortable. It made me feel numb- if I wasn't listening to anything I didn't have to think about anything. And if I wasn't thinking, I wasn't feeling.

But this silence was different. It hovered, making me uncomfortable. Maybe it was because around Syaoran I talked so much, but whatever it was- I felt the need to say something.

The first thing I thought of I blurted out- and I then realized it was probably the stupidest thing to say.

"Do you like Meilin?"

Syaoran looked at me like I had three heads. "Well she is my cousin, so you could say I more than like her. She's family." I nodded, and spewed out another sentence. It was like word-vomit. "But, do you _like _her? She likesyou." I said then realized how creepy that sounded. Way to go Sakura- you just earned a badge for Pro-Stalker! "Or so I've heard," I recovered.

He pondered for a moment then stared ahead. "Well, I care about her very much. When I was going through some hard times, she helped me out." I knew what was coming next- obviously he was in love with her and they were planning on getting engaged. "But I don't think of her in _that _way." he said and I suddenly felt a strange wave of relief. I mentally smacked myself- what the fuck?!

"I see." I mumbled then pretended to be intently interested in a leaf strewed in the middle of the street. Silence fell upon us again, and I only felt more awkward.

After a few minutes, Syaoran broke the silence this time. "Let's play a game," he suggested. I giggled. "What?" he asked, looking like a lost puppy. "Nothing, that was just really out of the blue." I said, containing my giggles.

"Fine then. Don't play," he said defensively. I found myself disagreeing without even realizing it. "No, no! I want to play a game," I said. I was almost shocked at my instant reply.

"Too late. Its over." he teased. "Okay…" I mumbled and went back to staring at the road. "Wow, I'm just kidding. You need to learn to stand up for yourself," he joked and I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever. So what do you want to play?" I asked and he began thinking. "First letter, last letter?" he suggested and I asked what it was. "It's when you say a word and I have to say a new word beginning with the last letter of your word. You pick a category."

"Food," I said. "Alrighty. I'll go first. Uhm… spaghetti." I gaped- what sort of food started with an 'I'?

"Uh," I mumbled. He then laughed at me. "You're bad at this aren't you," he commented. "I've never played!" I retorted defensively, tired of his teasing.

"Okay. We'll play a different game. By the way, a food that starts with 'I'- ice cream. Yum." He gave me a wide-toothed smile and my heart couldn't help but jump.

"How about truth?" he asked. "What's that?" I looked up at him.

"Its simple. I ask you a question and you _have _to answer truthfully. No matter what."

"That sounds kind of dumb,"

"Yeah, I guess so. We play it at parties sometimes, and its fun. Anyways, the way you win is if I refuse to answer a question and I ask you one, and if you answer, you win."

I wasn't so sure if I wanted to play this. It seemed too personal. I had a feeling that Syaoran would have the power to get everything out of me- and then he'd find some way to use it against me. No matter how nice he was being- I still didn't trust him.

"It's okay if you don't want to play," he said. Maybe it was the way that he sounded, but I agreed hesitantly.

"Okay, you go first." he told me and I asked the first thing I thought of. "What's your favourite color?"

He laughed and I glared at him. "What?!" I asked. "Nothing. It's just usually when we play this people get really personal. And you ask the simplest thing," He giggled a bit more and I felt like a tool.

"Come on, dig down deeper than that." He prompted- and I decided to take the bait. "Why are you living with Hanako?"

His expression changed from amusement to sadness quickly. I suddenly felt like a bitch- maybe I shouldn't have digged that deep.

"Well, I guess it was just over a year ago," he began, and it was beginning to get darker- I could barely see his face anymore.

"My dad and Meilin's dad own a big corporation back home in Hong Kong. Li Industries. Our parents moved here when we were ten in order to expand their company- and I guess my dad always expected me to follow in the family business.

Anyway, when I turned 16, my family pressured me into getting a job- saying that I needed to understand responsibility if I ever wanted to take over the business.

So I ended up getting a job at Rush Hour- I'd known Tomoyo and Eriol from school and they said that there was a job opening in the kitchen, so I took it. Meilin followed shortly after," Syaoran snorted and I laughed.

"But once I finally got to cook something for the first time, even if it was a cheeseburger- I knew that I wanted to go to cooking school. I then began cooking supper every night at home- I tried western, Japanese and Chinese recipes. It became my passion," I smiled at the way he talked about something important to him.

"So I gathered to the courage to tell my dad I didn't want to take over the company. He could let one of my sisters take over- or Meilin- but he insisted a man be the heir. We got in a huge argument; he ended up calling me a few names,"

"What sort of names?" I didn't hesitate- I really wanted to know. "Only one question at a time." He demanded and I shrugged. "But if you want to know- he called me a girly gay man, and said that cooking was for women and that I was being ludicrous. I'm not gay- but my dad was being a complete asshole about everything, you know? So of course I called him names too. He ended up kicking me out.

I ended up at the bus stop that night with my gym bag packed with clothes and no money, freezing to death. I fell asleep on the bench, and the next morning Hanako found me. She offered me a place to stay, and I took up the offer. In exchange I do her favours and such," He finished and I wasn't quite sure what to say. What _were _you supposed to say to that?

"I'm sorry," I managed and he chuckled again. "Don't be. I'm much happier with Hanako." This made me smile- I knew she was taking care of him, or vice versa.

"Oh, and it's green."

"What?" I asked. "My favourite color. It's green."

We then turned down Hanako's road and I knew that this moment between us wasn't going to last much longer. I sighed.

"So it's my turn now right?" he asked and I nodded. "I think so,"

"Okay. How come you barely talk with anyone?"

"I talk. Look at me now,"

"You barely said any words to me before today."

"I've only been here a day!" I retorted, a little more harshly then before.

"What about that car ride? You never said a word."

"Maybe I thought you were a jerk,"

"That's no excuse."

"Yes, it is!"

He shrugged and a feeling of regret hovered. "Sorry." I mumbled. "It's okay. I guess truth isn't really that good of a game after all," he said.

"No…I guess I didn't talk much was because I haven't talked much really since Toya and my dad…" I couldn't bring myself to say it.

"Oh. I get it." We passed underneath a streetlight and I saw him smile reassuringly. With his reassurance, I felt like I could say more. More than I ever could.

"But before that I never really talked either. I don't have very good social skills, as you can see. After my mom passed, we had to move around a lot because we went through money problems. I guess I never learned how to make friends properly."

I felt his eyes staring me down, but I kept talking. "When we finally settled down, instead of being ignored all the time- girls began to take notice and started making fun of me. This one girl, Hoshiko Maname, made it her personal goal to torture me. She spread pregnancy rumours about me- and told everyone I had multiple diseases.

Anyway, I never really understood why. But I think it's because I just don't fit in. People don't like me." I finished when we were standing in front of the house.

"Well, you're wrong there." I looked at Syaoran- he was staring at me in a way that I'd never been stared at before. "I like you." he said, and I felt my heart jump yet again. But this time, it was bigger.

We stood there, the multiple lights from the house hitting us at almost every angle. I was frozen by his comment- nobody had ever told me they liked me before. We stared at each other for what amount of time I didn't know. It could've been seconds, minutes or hours.

Before I said anything, I heard Hanako's voice shout out. "Syao? Saku? Is that you guys?"

"Yeah, it's us." Syaoran called. He then began to stumble along quickly to the front step, and I followed. Right before we headed inside, Syaoran smiled at me again.

"Let's play this again sometime," he said and I still couldn't speak. I watched him head downstairs to his home, still entranced by his words.

- - - - -


	5. Don't Laugh At My Car

When I got inside, the first thing I saw was Hanako passed out on the couch, with Wolfie peacefully lying on her legs. I smiled at the duo, and knew I better not disturb them. I headed off to bed, (I was completely exhausted) and really didn't care that it was barely quarter after seven. But, as exhausted as I was- by the time I got into bed, I couldn't fall asleep.

My mind kept going over what Syaoran had said. Everything he'd said. He was so complex- much different then what I'd first assumed. _I guess first impressions don't really mean anything, _I thought. But the one thing that had confused me the most was why he was so comfortable opening up to me.

When we'd first met, I could tell that he wasn't a people person. And from what Hanako had told me, he wasn't. He was only comfortable around a few people (assumingly, Hanako and the Rush Hour Gang) and now I was one of them. But why?

He liked me for some reason. And for as long as I could keep my eyelids open- I tried to understand why.

- - - - -

I hadn't fallen asleep until about 3 o'clock. I'd only gotten maybe four hours of asleep when I heard a knock on my door.

_Seriously? _I groaned, and rolled out of bed. I slumped my way to the door- and opened it only to find Syaoran. He was showered, brushed and fully clothed. Unlike me.

Like the previous night, I went to bed in my shirt and panties because it was too darn hot for pyjamas. It'd taken me seconds after seeing Syaoran's cheeks turn red before I realized my half-nakedness. "Oh my god," I squawked, and swung the door shut. After I breathed in a few times, I poked my head out. He was staring at the ceiling.

"WHAT!" I screamed- and I noticed his cheeks turn redder (if that was even possible). _Why him? God hates me!! _I thought.

"I was just wondering if you were going to come in today," He continued staring as he spoke, carefully avoiding my gaze.

"Go where?" I demanded. I was still tired and wasn't processing things just right yet. "To work. You are still going to work at Rush, right?" He was looking at me now, almost anxiously. His hands were in his pockets, I was beginning to think this was his signature position. "It really isn't bad; I know you liked it yesterday. Plus Meilin will warm up to you-" He stopped talking when Hanako trotted behind him, and down the hall to the bathroom.

He chuckled at her, and looked back at me. I shrugged. Did I want to go back? Yes. But did I have the guts? Uhm let me get back to you on that.

"You know what, forget it. I'll just see you when I get back. I'm sure you wouldn't want to walk all the way to Rush Hour again," he said and turned around. Maybe it was the almost disappointment in his voice that made me change my mind.

"No wait, just let me jump in the shower. I'll be ready in ten minutes." I said. And when he smiled at me, it looked like I'd just made his day. "Great! I'll make breakfast in the meantime," he said.

Hanako trotted by just then, yawning slowly. "Make me some eggs, won't you dear?" she muttered and stretched as she walked. "Sure thing!" Syaoran called, and followed her downstairs into the kitchen.

- - - - -

While I was in the shower, my mind was flying left and right. I wasn't sure how Tomoyo would react about my little fit the day before, or if she'd be as welcoming as before. And what about Meilin? Would she still hate on me?

I couldn't deny what Syaoran had said- I _did _like it yesterday at Rush Hour. I felt like a part of a well oiled machine, or something. I just hoped things could work out the same today.

Once I finished washing the conditioner out of my hair (it only took at least a minute, having short hair was awesome), and quickly shaved my legs, I jumped out of the bathroom and wrapped a towel around myself. I ran out of the bathroom and into my room- I glanced at the clock. I'd only been five minutes.

That was the fastest shower I'd ever taken in my life.

I rummaged around my still unpacked suitcase for an outfit, and figured a simple white v-neck t-shirt and black jean shorts would be good enough. I was only going to waitress, right?

I got dressed, and then brushed out my hair. I slapped on a bit of eye makeup- thick mascara and eyeliner, the usual. After I was finished, I stared at my reflection. _Good as it'll get, _I thought. _In ten minutes, anyway. _

I strided into the kitchen with a mixed feeling of nervousness and excitement. When I saw Hanako munching on a gigantic plate of eggs, oblivious to the world, I couldn't help but feel a bit nice. She was so full of life.

Syaoran was frying up what smelt like bologna and boiling some sort of green vegetable. He felt my presence, and turned his head towards me and nodded. I nodded back, and made my way to the table. When Hanako noticed me, she smiled a very food-filled smile.

"You're up early," she remarked. I nodded, and poured some milk into a glass that was already waiting for me. "Well we have to be up early if we want to make it to Rush Hour for our shifts," Syaoran said, and poured some bologna onto a plate on the counter.

"Your shifts?" Hanako asked, clanking her fork onto her plate. I remembered that Hanako was completely oblivious to everything that had happened to previous day, since she was asleep when we got home and wasn't exactly filled in. Although I'd only known her a few days, I could safely assumer she didn't like not being in the loop of things.

"Yup, did Sakura tell you she's working at Rush Hour now?" Syaoran smiled at us from across the room, and I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly. "No!" Hanako stabbed her fork onto the plate, obviously in shock.

"It was crazy busy yesterday, so when Sakura showed up Tomoyo begged her to help out with the tables. Turns out she's a natural," he spoke with a tone of proudness, as if he was discussing his son's latest soccer goal. _This is awkward, _I thought to myself, and pretended to be fascinated in the way Wolfie was pacing back and forth between the kitchen and living room.

"Goodness Saku! That is wonderful! What a perfect way to make some friends," Hanako said, and I stared at Wolfie. Syaoran came over to the table and placed a plate in front of me- complete with chopped fried bologna, eggs and broccoli. Odd combo.

"Thanks," I said and he smiled in welcome. He then sat down across from me with his own plate. "Well, I hope you two youngsters have fun today," Hanako said, smiling at me. Her eyes were glittering with a sense of imagination. I didn't want to know what sort of things she was imagining me and Syaoran doing together.

She placed her hand on her cheek and looked off into the distance. I tried to smile, but it just came out awkwardly.

- - - - -

After breakfast, Syaoran wanted to go immediately. I agreed, but just said I needed to freshen up quickly. I ran upstairs, and into my bedroom. For some reason, my shirt just didn't feel right.

As I was trying to decide which shirt, I watched Syaoran stand in the driveway patiently from my window. Err, make that impatiently. He really didn't have patience. I didn't really get how he could be a cook without patience- didn't serious dishes take like 3 hours to make?

I tried on a tank top with a push up bra underneath. No. I didn't want to look like a slut. I then tried on a black t-shirt with a Slipknot logo. No. I didn't want to come off as a complete emo, no matter how depressed I was.

I dug through my suitcase when I pulled out white t-shirt I immediately recognized as not mine- but my brothers.

Shortly after I moved in with Monoke, she suggested we sell all of my dad's and brother's stuff so I could have a bit of extra cash for emergencies. I don't really remember agreeing, but right before she sent the boxes away, I stole one of my dad's and one of Toya's shirts.

Until now, I'd forgotten I had it.

Toya's was one of his from when he went to middle school, so it was obviously too small for him before he died. I sniffed it, and it still smelt like him. I choked back a tear as I put it on and looked into the mirror. It fit nicely around me- still loose but not too baggy. I showed my curves but not too much.

I nodded at my reflection and left the room feeling almost safe wrapped up in my brother's old scent.

- - - - -

After we set off, Syaoran immediately started the conversation. "So," he said. "I do believe it was my turn."

"What?"

"Our game. It was my turn." he said and smiled down at me. "Uh no," I disagreed. "It was my turn." "I swear on my grave that it was my turn." He smirked cockishly and I shook my head.

The burning sunlight smeared all around us. It felt like 30°C already- and it must've only been eight. I looked at Syaoran. He came prepared, decked out in sunglasses and smelling like sunscreen.

"Well, I guess you're going to die later because I asked you why you were living with Hanako, and you asked why I didn't talk. It's my turn," I said triumphantly. I didn't know what it was about today- the sunshine, Syaoran himself or Toya's shirt, but I felt better. Better than I had in a long while.

Syaoran stared at me in defeat and said "Ask away," I pondered for a moment. What else did I want to know about Syaoran Li?

"What terrifies you?" I asked, and he pursed his lips. Silence. Then,

"Frogs," he muttered. "No, seriously!" I retorted.

"Frogs." he said. I giggled and he closed his eyes. "It's not funny! I'm serious! When we were five, Meilin put one in my underwear drawer. It'd been a week until I opened the thing, and when I found a dead frog I freaked. Even the thought of them now gives me the creeps." He shivered and I laughed out loud. "You didn't change your underwear for a week?!?"

His eyes widened and he cupped his face with his hands. He's so cute. "Shut up!" he snapped and I laughed some more. "You dirty child." I teased and he turned a bit red.

"Fine! What's the grossest thing you did as a kid?" Knowing this was his next question, I smiled. "Well, one night when I was like seven, I threw up in my sleep and didn't notice until I woke up. It was everywhere." My nose wrinkled in disgust of that awful memory. Toya had almost gotten sick changing my sheets.

"Ew!" Syaoran laughed, and I sighed. "How do you not wake up while you're throwing up?" He chuckled some more. "I don't know, I was a heavy sleeper."

"That's fucked up," he commented when suddenly a horn beeped behind us. We turned in unison to see who was honking at us.

A faded green 1955 Volkswagen Beetle drove up beside us, and I suddenly questioned if everyone in Tomoeda drove rusty, old cars. As the beetle approached, I recognized the driver as Eriol.

_That's odd. Aren't beetles like girly cars? _I thought as he pulled up beside us and reached over and opened the passenger door. Eriol looked extremely cool; he had on aviator sunglasses and a v-neck. "Hey, need a ride to work?" he asked Syaoran, and he nodded. "Thanks man," Syaoran said and hopped inside the car. Eriol leaned over and stared at me.

"You coming too or do you want to turn into a French fry in this heat?" he asked, and I then squeezed through the crack between the back seat and the passenger's. "I would've gotten out for you." Syaoran said as he pulled the door shut, and I shrugged. "Oh, and don't laugh at my car. Dad forced me to buy my own- it was all I could afford." Eriol explained, and I grinned. "Alright," I muttered.

Inside the car was air conditioned, odd enough for such an old car. I leaned forward and noticed that the whole dashboard looked modern- it obviously had been hammered with. There was a nice stereo, too.

The breeze made me relax, and I settled in the middle seat. I popped on my seatbelt and Syaoran turned around. He mouthed the words "Continue this later?" and I smiled.

I liked this game.

- - - - -

During the drive, Syaoran and Eriol talked. And talked. Just from watching them, you could tell they were the best of friends. They seemed to flow together when they conversed, already knowing what the other was going to say. I only thought that sort of thing happened in movies.

Them talking sent out a very mellow and easy atmosphere and every once in a while when they stopped speaking for a second, Eriol would look at me through his overhead mirror and smile. He was truly a nice guy.

Then they'd talk again, about whatever. Sometimes they'd clue me in, if they were talking about someone who they nicknamed or a place. But other than that, I was completely forgotten.

"So my mom called again last night, begging-" Syaoran began. "You to come home? And she wants you to spend you're seventeenth at the house right?" Eriol interrupted. "Yeah, she just doesn't get it. She wants like have a big formal party." Syaoran shook his head, and picked up a CD off the dashboard and casually read the song list.

"Psh," Eriol snorted. "We're celebrating your birth at the beach. You did invite Tomoyo right?" Syaoran laughed at this. I was trying to figure out why when Eriol glanced at my reflection and smirked.

I looked out the windshield- we were almost to Rush Hour. My stomach did a flip.

"Eriol has had a crush on Tomoyo since he was like, 3." Syaoran explained, and I nodded. "Too bad the only problem is she's too oblivious to notice anything- no matter how hard our Eriol tries." Syaoran looked at him and chuckled.

"I don't have a crush on her, Li." Eriol corrected. "I am in _love _withher. And it's only a matter of time until she realizes she loves me too." He shifted his posture, and then turned into the parking lot of Rush Hour. As usual, few cars were there. Today there was two I remembered seeing before- one a big shiny black Lincoln Navigator and one a polished, 1965 mustang. And of course, having spent there overnight was Syaoran's rusty old jeep.

"Looks like the whole staffs working today," Eriol remarked and stepped out of the car. Syaoran followed, and this time he pulled his seat forward so I had space to get out. I nodded in thanks.

The three of us headed into the building, and I was quite unsure of what to expect.

- - - - -

"Morning!" Eriol called out as we walked in, and went behind the counter to pick up an apron. On cue popped out Tomoyo.

She was wrapping her own apron around her waist, and nodded at us. After she finished, she looked up at us and began grinning hugely. "Sakura!" she exclaimed, and ran out behind the counter to hug me. I winced as she grabbed on- but I still smiled anyway. I was glad she wasn't upset with me.

"Why did you randomly leave yesterday?" she said as she let me go. "I still wanted to hang out with you or something! Anyway, I'm glad your back today. I'm so happy you're joining our team." I felt my spirit lift. She actually said she was happy I was joining them. Maybe I _could _find someway to fit in here.

Syaoran gave my shoulder a little squeeze before walking behind the counter and giving me a smile. I nodded at him before he disappeared around the corner.

"How was your night Tomoyo?" Eriol asked, randomly popping into the conversation. "It was good. I finished a new outfit, which is great because the carnival is tonight. I think I'm going to wear it." Tomoyo grinned in response and Eriol nodded happily.

"Speaking of the carnival, would you like to be my-" Before Eriol could finish, another voice came into the conversation. "Too late Eriol, Tomoyo's my date tonight. I'm not letting you steal her away," Meilin walked out of the bathroom, a bag of Crispy Minis in hand, her picking away and popping them into her mouth.

She made her way towards us, and Eriol glared at her. She smirked knowingly. "You could steal her away for one ride I guess, but Syaoran will have to ride the Ferris wheel with me in the meantime." She winked at Eriol and he relaxed.

Tomoyo turned to me and smiled. "Oh my gosh! Sakura you should totally come with us tonight," she said. "W-what?" I asked. "Every summer Tomoeda puts on one-day only carnival down by the pier. We can never go during the day because we're always working, but we're going tonight. It's not much, but there are rides. And cotton candy," Tomoyo rubbed her stomach at the mention of cotton candy and Eriol chuckled.

"Uhm," I muttered and looked at my feet. Even when I was little, I had never really liked carnivals. Toya had always made me go on the big rides and I had always gotten sick.

"Forget it. She doesn't want to go," Meilin shrugged and went behind the counter. She took an apron off a hook on the wall and began tying it around her waist.

Syaoran then walked out of the kitchen and looked at us. "What's up?" he asked and took one of Meilin's Crispy Minis. She didn't seem to mind. "We're trying to convince Sakura to come with us tonight," Tomoyo explained and Syaoran stood up straight. "Yeah, you should come!" he said with enthusiasm. He then shrugged and muttered, "Well if you want too, it's usually pretty lame and stuff."

Tomoyo giggled- I wasn't quite sure why but I decided to ignore it. Meilin snorted and Eriol just stared at Syaoran. _Awkward, _I thought.

"But yeah Sakura! You could get ready with me and Meilin at my house," Tomoyo suggested. Meilin shifted position. "Uh oh. You don't want to do that," she said, walking around the counter and leaning against it. "You'll become her Barbie doll."

I felt as if Meilin was trying to convince me not to go.

Tomoyo's eyebrow twitched. "Well, you wouldn't mind since you pointed out all these things that are wrong with her." Meilin shrugged. "True enough."

I'm not quite sure what came over me- maybe I just wanted to piss off Meilin. "No it's okay, I'll come. And I'll get ready with you." I said and Tomoyo jumped with excitement.

"Awesome! You can use my cell and call Hanako, and once we get off we'll head straight over. Okay?" Tomoyo verified and I nodded. Eriol grinned. "Alright!" he said and I smiled up at him.

Meilin just stalked off outside to what I assumed was smoke a cigarette, while the rest of us prepared for Rush Hour's opening.

- - - - -


	6. Bigger Picture

**Chapter 6- A Bigger Picture **

**This chapter is sort of shit. Sorry. **

- - - - -

If there was one thing Meilin was right about, it was that I'd become Tomoyo's Barbie doll.

It was around seven o clock now - we'd started closing up at Rush Hour at six thirty. Afterwards, Syaoran and Eriol disappeared quickly, but had promised to pick us up from Tomoyo's at nine. After I called Hanako to confirm I could go along with the plan, we were gone (she said yes- she was overjoyed with the news of me going out).

When the three of us got to Tomoyo's, the first thing I noticed was that nobody was home. Which sort of made me uncomfortable; I'd never been in someone else's house without their parents there before (heck, I could count the peoples whose houses I've been to on my hand). She assured me it was fine, and that her mother was never really around anyway. I wondered why, but Meilin and Tomoyo both went into pursuit.

Meilin had automatically headed to the fridge for some snack food, and Tomoyo began searching the house for god only knew what. I placed myself on the couch, and awkwardly waited for Tomoyo's return. Meilin was staring at me the whole ten minutes.

When Tomoyo got back, she had multiple bags of makeup and hair-care products in her arms. I stared at them; I'd never seen so much in my life. She could have supplied a whole drug store easily.

After I gawked for a second, she guided us to the bathroom and placed me on the toilet. I had a hard time not gawking at the bathroom, too, because it was the size of my bedroom. Complete with a Jacuzzi and a gigantic mirror- I was afraid I'd touch something and get it dirty.

Tomoyo and Meilin exchanged glances- and for some reason I knew what was coming. Then, "We have to fix your hair." Tomoyo grinned.

"Don't worry. She cuts my hair all the time," Meilin smiled unexpectantly. She seemed at ease, maybe it was all the food I saw her scarf down. How did she stay so skinny…?

My thoughts had wandered, and I hadn't noticed Tomoyo whip out scissors until she snapped them in my face. I winced. "You know, we could just go to hair dresser or something," I pleaded, but it was too late.

She made the first cut.

I felt the hair on the left side of my head drop and I froze. Meilin and Tomoyo giggled, and they reassured me it was going to be fine. Snip, snip, snip. Once she started moving to the back of my head, Tomoyo randomly asked Meilin, "Could you go put on some music?" Meilin nodded. "Who should join the party?" she asked, I noticed Meilin was much more relaxed and nicer when she wasn't at Rush Hour. Huh.

"Definitely Hannah Montana," Tomoyo beamed and stopped to observe her work. She nodded then proceeded to cut. Meilin skipped out of the room, and down the hall. A sudden bust of Miley Cyrus's song Rock Star began to blare loudly.

I jumped at the sudden noise and Tomoyo scowled. "Sakura! Don't move! I could've cut you!" My eyes widened at this possibility- I hadn't even thought of that. What if she stabbed me and I wouldn't stop bleeding?! "Or worse." I winced at what she meant. Obviously, death. "I could've messed up," she explained and I raised one eyebrow. Seriously?

Meilin returned to the bathroom, and took a towel out from under the sink. "Mind if I shower?" Meilin asked and Tomoyo shook her head. I suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable. I mean, I knew Meilin and Tomoyo were close, but close enough so Meilin wouldn't mind showering in the bathroom we were still in?!?!

I felt like a dummy when Meilin said, "I'll be back in a few minutes," and stalked off. There must've been another bathroom.

I wasn't sure what was wrong with me- maybe I was nervous about the carnival, or just being with two other females in general. I'd never done this sort of thing before (get ready, go out together, etc.) and I didn't know if I was doing it right. So I relaxed my shoulders and told myself that everything was fine. I then sunk into a familiar feeling of numbness, and I closed my eyes.

I couldn't tell you how long she cut my hair, but after awhile Tomoyo grinned at me and said I was finished. I checked the clock on the wall- it'd only been ten minutes. A hair cut that fast?! I felt my stomach twist- would I look different? Better? Worse? Only the mirror would tell.

I stood clumsily and stepped in front of the mirror. What I saw what a completely different girl.

"I only trimmed it, and made it even. I also gave you a bit of layers, but other than that I didn't do much. It isn't that different, I just made it shape your face a bit more. Sorry if you hate it…" Tomoyo said and I shook my head. I didn't like it. I loved it.

I stared at my reflection- what I saw wasn't Sakura Kinomoto, otherwise known as butter face and frizzy in Tokyo. What I saw was a very, very pretty girl.

My hair was even and somehow it looked shiny- how did she do that? - And the cut really did compliment my face. It was short, but not too short; it rested on my shoulders nicely. "Thank you," I looked at Tomoyo, and struggled to hold back tears.

"Don't get too excited, we aren't finished yet." Meilin strided down the hall and into the bathroom. Her hair was wet and down, and she wasn't wearing her waitress uniform anymore. Instead, she was sporting a tight, dark red t-shirt (it matched her eye color beautifully,) and a black denim skirt. She looked great. I was sure almost every boy in Tomoeda would be after her tonight.

"That's true," Tomoyo mused and I couldn't help but let a grin slip. She grabbed my hand and pulled me down the hall and into a room. I assumed it was her bedroom; this was the definite location of the Hannah Montana music.

Tomoyo's room was huge, with a queen bed in the middle, a dresser off to the right wall (complete with gigantic mirror) and a closet on the left. Her bed had a purple canopy and bedspread, and her floors were hardwood. It smelt like vanilla, which made my nose tingle with delight.

Despite its grandeur, the thing that struck me the most about her room was the walls. They were covered with pictures. When I say covered, I mean it. Seriously, I couldn't even tell what the color of the wall was (I assumed it's purple).

You would assume a girl like Tomoyo would put up pictures of models or idols she's admires, but I guess Tomoyo isn't the stereotype you'd imagine. In actuality, the majority of the pictures were of Syaoran, Eriol, Tomoyo and Meilin. Some were of unfamiliar faces in school hallways; I assumed they were fellow classmates and friends. I even spotted one picture of Hanako and Syaoran in front of the house, Hanako holding Wolfie and Syaoran with an arm around her.

The occurring theme in each picture was that each and every person seemed perfectly happy. Not all of them were smiling; some were just making goofy faces. But I knew for a fact that in every single one of these moments (the millions of them) that they were happy.

I stood at Tomoyo's door for a moment and tried to take it all in. I tried to imagine what sort of situations everyone was in when these were going on- I saw pictures of cultural festivals, some at the beach. I giggled at one of Eriol on the ground after tripping. I looked at all of the pictures I could, but there was just so many. I wondered how many rolls of film it took to take all of them.

Tomoyo kicked clothes out of the way as she walked over to the stereo. She turned the volume down and shivered. "Man, Meilin likes that way too loud." she said. She then noticed me staring.

"Right now there are 1,462." she said, and I looked at her. "Pictures?" I asked, and she nodded. "Holy shit," I blurted without thinking, and she laughed. "That's every ones reaction when they first see it."

"But, by the time we're finished with tonight, there should be at_ least_ 200 more," she said and put her hands on her hips. I could tell she was proud of her work.

She clapped her hands together, which startled me. "Well, let's get to work. What size are you?"

- - - - -

An hour later, I was fully decked up in Tomoyo's clothes, and my makeup was done. Luckily we were the same size (I found this hair to believe, she was much curvier and had a nicer shape than I) and I fit into everything she'd thrown at me.

I was wearing dark skinny jeans, and I had on a navy three quarter sleeved shirt. I was wearing Tomoyo's red ballet flats- and I felt completely out of my comfort zone (usually consisted of black). The first things she'd made me try on were bright pinkie colors- and I'd begged for something darker. When she finally agreed on the navy shirt, she began my makeup.

By then, Meilin was completely finished. She left her hair down tonight, which complimented her body shape. It was so long and silky, it sort of made me miss mine a little. But I shouldn't complain- honestly, my new hair was phenomenal. But still.

While Meilin watched Tomoyo do me up, she leaned against the dresser and munched on multiple snack food, including cookies and gummy bears.

When Tomoyo was finally finished my makeup ("Makeup is an art. It takes time," she explained), I felt even more different. My face seemed to have the same texture as a pancake. When I looked in the mirror, I sure didn't resemble one. She barely had put anything on- just a bit of blush and mascara. But it really made all the difference.

"Your skin is beautiful. I'm so jealous you don't need any cover up." Tomoyo commented. I suddenly remembered the girls at my old school calling me butter face. "Oh gosh!" She squealed. "All of the Tomoeda boys will be falling over each other to get your name."

"I wouldn't say _that," _Meilin said, her mouth full of food. She swallowed. And then, "But she's okay." I knew from Meilin, this was a true compliment. I must've looked good.

Tomoyo glanced at the clock on the nightstand. It was quarter to nine- she only had fifteen minutes until the boys got here. "Shit," she muttered. "I won't have time to take a shower or anything."

I didn't see why she'd need one- she was gorgeous, and certainly not dirty.

"Shut up Tomoyo, you look fine. All you have to do is change and you'll look absolutely perfect." Meilin practically took the words out of my mouth as she picked through her cookie bag. "No," Tomoyo disagreed. "Yes. You make gorgeous effortless. No wonder every girl in Tomoeda hates you." She said non-chalantly, as if this was nothing new.

Tomoyo frowned. "Not everyone hates me," she said to no one in particular and began rummaging through her closet for an outfit she said she'd finished making earlier. I took this opportunity to look at more pictures on the wall.

- - - - -

It was about 9:10 when a horn beeped outside, and we knew the boys had arrived. Tomoyo still managed looked absolutely fantastic in 25 minutes. She gave up on the dress she'd made that morning because there wasn't enough time. So she just put her hair in a ponytail, threw on an old pair of jeans, a purple tank top and was a complete vision. I envied her effortless beauty. I could tell from the way Meilin snorted, she did too (she shouldn't complain).

After Tomoyo grabbed a sweater and her purse, we made our way outside. Standing next to Meilin and Tomoyo, even with my new haircut and clothes, I still felt frumpy. Meilin shot me a confident look right before we got into Eriol's car- and I felt even frumpier.

Once the door opened and Syaoran stepped out to let us in, the overwhelming scent of cologne took over. Tomoyo gagged. "What is that?" she demanded.

"Eriol." Syaoran muttered staring up at the sky, not bothering to look at us. He shook his head. I took him in- he was sporting clean clothes and despite the dark, his hair still gleamed in the moonlight. Wow is the only word that could describe him.

"What?" Meilin asked as the three of us got in the back, and when Syaoran settled in and shut the door he explained. "I tried to convince him to put on less, but he didn't take no for an answer."

Eriol started up the engine and didn't say a word. But his facial expression said it all. He was embarrassed, and profusely.

"Well, it doesn't smell that bad." I tried to make him feel better and he gave me a look that said "Thanks for trying, but I don't think it makes a difference."

Suddenly Tomoyo said, "Oh shit! I forgot my camera, Syaoran can you let me out for a second?" Syaoran chuckled and stepped out of the car and let Tomoyo out.

Once she was inside, Meilin spoke. "How is it possible to try too hard but not try at all?!"

Syaoran laughed loudly and Eriol slumped against the steering wheel. "I didn't realize it was too much!" He retorted and Syaoran narrowed his eyebrows. "Dude, I said you had put on enough. Multiple times."

"There is no way I'm sitting next to you when we all go on the Tilt-A-World." Meilin said and I stared at Eriol. "I was just trying to impress her," he whispered, sounding like a lost puppy. I couldn't help but feel bad for him. Meilin lifted her head, and leaned toward the front.

"Don't worry; you already got her in the bag." She smiled reassuringly. Meilin acted like a bitch most of the time, but it was the little things she said that really made all of the difference.

Tomoyo made her way back to the car, and after about a minute, we were off.

- - - - -

I was pretty sure the entire population of Tomoeda teens were at the fairground. There was not a child or adult in sight, and the whole place was crowed with teenagers. People were everywhere- some smoking, most drinking, some in line for the rides.

Other than the substance abuse and the large crowd, the lights from all of the rides were beautiful. The way they spun around and gleamed constantly, the reminded me of the fireflies I'd seen with Syaoran. At this moment I shot him a glance, only to find him already looking at me.

Staring was more like it.

I suddenly felt uncomfortable, and tugged at my shirt. "…Did you do something to you're hair?" he asked. "Tomoyo cut it," Meilin explained, obvious annoyed by the attention Syaoran was giving me. There was a pause. Then, "I like it."

I could feel my cheeks turn hot- how pathetic I was. Just how much of an influence could this guy have on me? Good thing it was remotely dark.

"So what ride should we waste our pay checks on?" Eriol asked, his lanky body hovering over us. Eriol looked nice tonight, too. He sported a baby blue deep v-neck tee (he seemed to have a lot of those) and jeans. Besides the scent emitting off him, he was very handsome.

"I want to ride the Ferris wheel first." Tomoyo smiled, and grabbed my hand. She began trucking towards the large Ferris wheel and its line up. The rest of the us followed without hesitation.

Once we got in line, a boy with fiery red hair and freckles approached us. I recognized him from some of the pictures on Tomoyo's wall. "Hey E," he said to Eriol, and he nodded. "How's it going guys?" he asked and I noticed his breath smelt of cotton candy. My stomach panged with a sense of hunger.

"Great!" Tomoyo said, and then reached inside her purse. She took out her camera. "Smile, Ryu!" she shouted, and Ryu grabbed Meilin into a hug. Meilin rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway. After the flash went off, she pushed Ryu off. "Pig," she muttered.

Tomoyo then turned towards me and Syaoran. She snapped a picture, and the flash hurt my eyes. I should've seen that coming. Syaoran rolled his eyes in a way that was identical to Meilin's.

"Beware of the guy running the Ferris wheel," Ryu said. "He's a grabber." Meilin stuck out her tongue. "I doubt he's as grabby as you," I got the feeling that 'grabber' meant he was a pervert. Great.

Ryu then looked at me and said, "Who's the cutie?"

I almost let my jaw drop- and I tried very hard not to let it go. "This is Sakura," Tomoyo said and pulled me into a half hug. "She's Hanako's granddaughter. Her family just…." She trailed off, but Ryu got the point. "…uhm, yeah. She moved in with Hanako recently. And I know, isn't she just adorable?" Tomoyo squeezed me tighter, and I tried to smile.

"Nice to meet you Sakura, I'm Ryu." He nodded at me. "Hope to see you around." He winked, too and I felt my eyes tinkle. I wasn't used to this much attention.

Suddenly, it was time for two of us to get on the Ferris wheel. Tomoyo was pulling me toward the step to get on, but Eriol grabbed her arm. "Actually," he smiled. "Mind if I take this one?"

"Knock her socks off!" Meilin called out as they stepped on, and Eriol looked over his shoulder and winked. I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Who's next?" The carnie-guy running the ride asked, after he situated Tomoyo and Eriol and sent them off.

"Let's go, little lady." Ryu said to Meilin, and guided her along with him. That left me and Syaoran. Meilin glanced back at us as we got on, and she shot me a deathly look. This obviously wasn't the way she'd planned it.

When they set off, the last seat left was for the two of us. Syaoran looked at me and said, "It's okay if you don't want to go on with me." I shook my head.

"No, that's okay. I've never even been on one of these before," I said- which was true. He looked at me as we got on. "Is that right?" he asked. I nodded.

As we set off, he spoke again. "I thought Tokyo was loaded with these things?" My stomach whirled as we rode higher into the air; a cool breeze blew right through my hair. "Yes, but that doesn't mean I ever went on one. I can barely remember the last time I was even to a carnival." I tried to scrounge up one of my early memories with my parents and Toya. One time we went to a cultural festival and Toya let me go on rides with him. I cleared my throat- I need to stop or I would get upset soon.

We made it too the top and I glanced down at the people below us- trying to hide my face from Syaoran. "I guess there are a lot of things I still don't know about you, Sakura Kinomoto…" Syaoran said and I looked at him. His deep eyes sparkled with the reflection of the lights. "

We made the complete circle, and I was still lost in his eyes when he spoke again. "Which means, this calls for another game of truth." he said. I rolled my eyes. "Why do you like this game so much?"

"Hey guys!" Tomoyo shouted from above us, and I looked up. She had her camera dangling over the bar. She took a picture of us from up above, and Syaoran waved.

Eriol seemed to be holding on for dear life.

"He's scared of heights you know," Syaoran randomly said. "Eriol?" I verified. "Yep."

"Then _why _is he on the Ferris wheel?"

"He'll do anything for that girl." This I smiled at. Eriol sure was in love.

Syaoran looked back at me, and I tilted my head. "So back to truth," he said. "Fine." I muttered.

"If you could have one superpower what would it be?" he smiled and I laughed. He stared at me, and I then seriously thought about it. "Uhm, I wish I could fly." He tilted his head. "Why?" he asked.

Since this was truth, I knew I'd have to tell him. Usually, I'd be totally embarrassed. The thing was, with him I wasn't. "So I could fly up to heaven and see my family again." I looked up at him, and he was just staring at me. He looked as if he was struggling with what he should say, but he didn't say a word. He looked below us and sighed.

After about a minute I finally said, "My turn!" But just as I said this, our ride was coming to a slow and I knew we'd have to get off. When we stopped completely, I noticed we were first out of the group to finish.

We stood and waited for our friends to get off, and I tried to think of a question. I glanced around us- there was a large group of girls to my left, all staring at Syaoran. I leaned past Syaoran to the right, and saw even more girls staring. I snorted.

"What?" he asked. "What's it like being…" I was so sure I would be able to ask him this. But now, as I was about to- I almost chickened out. But I didn't. "…gorgeous," I finished and he looked at me.

His eyebrows narrowed and he was looking at me like I was retarded. Oh god.

"I wouldn't know." he said finally and I laughed. Loudly. "What?" he asked. "You've got to be kidding." I said.

"I really wouldn't know," he said. "You tell me."

I rolled my eyes. "Right, because I'm so beautiful." I sarcastically commented.

"Yes." he said- no trace of sarcasm in his voice. I gulped. I didn't dare look at him, either.

"You know you're hot, Syaoran. Admit it." I surprised myself with my burst of confidence. Maybe he'd just irritated me enough. "Look around you. Girls are staring. _Everywhere._"

He sighed. "Okay, well… I just don't notice it really. It's always been like this, so I never had to get used to it or anything. Just the way girls act around me." he said and shrugged. Anyone who was probably listening in to us would've thought this sounded conceited, but I could tell he didn't mean it that way.

I nodded, and then Ryu and Meilin appeared in front of us. Meilin's jaw was dropped, and I could tell something must've happened. "That god damn pervert grabbed my ass as I got off." Meilin said, bursting with fury. Ryu looked kind of amused.

"I told you so," he said. Meilin just glared at him.

Tomoyo and Eriol trotted over, Eriol being tugged by Tomoyo's hand. He seemed queasy, as if he would faint at any moment. I held in a laugh.

"Well Eriol's petrified." Tomoyo declared as if this was nothing unordinary. Eriol then made a groaning noise. She laughed, and used her hand that wasn't holding his to take a picture of his face. He seemed annoyed by this- but was far too nauseous to do anything.

Ryu seemed to drift off somewhere in the crowd, and we then made our way to the Tilt-A-World.

Our night went on like this, moving from ride until ride. Tomoyo would continuously snap pictures away, Eriol would constantly feel sick after the rides involving height, and Meilin was constantly getting hit on by guys. Despite the routine, they were having fun. And so was I. Together.

Maybe, I wasn't exactly apart of _their_ puzzle. But maybe, just maybe- I'd became apart of a newer picture. A bigger one, with five people attached. Just maybe, we'd become a new 'us'.

For a moment, even if it just was the atmosphere- I didn't feel as alone.

- - - - -


	7. Cliff Diving

**Chapter 7: Cliff diving**

A week had passed.

Syaoran and I were taking daily shifts at Rush Hour along with Tomoyo, Eriol and Meilin. Ever since the night at the carnival, we were always together.

Over the course of seven days, I picked up a few things about my companions.

Meilin wasn't just having the munchies that day. She ate _all_ of the time. I also found out that every single time she ate potato chips she needed a cigarette.  
Meilin hadn't exactly warmed up to me yet, but we were getting there. Maybe.

Eriol basically revolved around Tomoyo. When he wasn't around her, he was thinking about her. It was kind of sad, really. He spent so much time trying to get her attention when she was just too blind to notice at all.

I think Eriol grows an inch everyday.

Tomoyo was always making outfits- she claimed it was her hobby. She was always trying to convince me to try on her clothes, but I begged her not to. I once considered the possibility that she was one of those kids who mother denied a Barbie doll, so now she was trying to use people as them.

I'm pretty sure during the week; Tomoyo has used up over 50 rolls of film.

Syaoran and I played Truth every chance we got. Everybody picked up on it after a day or two, because we were always going off alone. Meilin and Eriol seemed to think it was pretty odd- but I really couldn't think of any better way to get to know somebody. Off the top of my head I can list Syaoran's worst nightmare (frogs eating him), his fears, his dreams and how old he was when he got his first kiss. How many people can you list all of that about off the top of your head?

It's pretty amazing that neither of us have lost yet. I'll admit it- I hope nobody wins or loses. I wish that out game could go on forever.

Because it was getting later in the summer, and much hotter- Syaoran and I managed to convince Hanako to save energy and turn off the lights. The extra luminance was killing us and her bill too. After two painful days of arguing, she finally caved. I was extremely happy.

It was now July 5th. I was busing a table by myself in Rush Hour mid afternoon, and to no surprise, no customers were there. The blaring heat was probably too much to bear. I sat down in the table and looked out the window towards the beach. There were tons of people everywhere in the water and on the sand tanning. It was probably too much effort to walk across the street to buy food when there's a canteen on the beach.

Eriol came out of the kitchen untying his apron. "Gah!" he shouted and pulled it off. "I can't stand staying back there! Too hot!" I sighed, and he just slumped over the counter.

"I'm dying here!" he shouted again, as if he was expecting me to do something. "Why doesn't your dad invest in air conditioning?" I tried. He glared up at me and I twitched with fright. "Because he is a cruel, cruel man."

Tomoyo walked out of the bathroom, and Eriol sat up. "H-hey," he stuttered. Instead of giving him a usual smile, Tomoyo sighed. Eriol frowned and turned around. He leaned against the counter.

"So…" he tried to break the hovering silence, but it just wasn't helping. The heat ruined everything.

Tomoyo rolled her eyes, and picked up a mop against the wall and leaned against this. "This is _shit_," she mumbled. Eriol groaned in response, and I looked back at all of the people on the beach.

Suddenly, the door burst open, and two familiar faces were beaming at us. "WOOP, WOOP!" Meilin exclaimed eagerly. "What do you two want?" Eriol grumbled.

Syaoran and Meilin were both grinning from ear to ear. Meilin seemed to be ready for the beach, dressed in a straw hat and a bikini top and shorts, while Syaoran was just wearing a t-shirt and shorts. He was holding a beach ball.

"What do you think, Eriol? This place is dead to the world. We're going to the beach!" Meilin pointed out the window towards Syaoran's jeep.

"Are you serious?!" Tomoyo squealed, fidgeting with excitement on the spot. "Yes, I'm serious. We have stuff packed and everything," Meilin explained.

Eriol sighed. "I can't just close up for no reason, Dad would kill me." "Oh contraire, my tall friend, we already asked him. He said it was cool." My eyes widened. Meilin had to have bribed him or something along those lines.

Eriol was just as surprised as me, but then Syaoran spoke for the first time. "Dude, it's cool. Just come to the beach with us." Eriol then hopped over the counter and stumbled over. "Alright!" He grinned.

Tomoyo had made her way towards them too, and then they all looked at me. "I'm assuming you're coming too?" Meilin questioned in a bored way. "Sure… I mean if you guys want me to," I rubbed the back of my head.

"Why wouldn't we?" Tomoyo then grabbed my hand and we all made the way outside. Eriol locked up Rush Hour and we were gone.

- - - -

We had to make stops at Hanako's, Tomoyo's and Eriol's to get all of our stuff. I was last, and when I got inside and Hanako asked if I was going to the beach with Syaoran, I said yes. She smirked, turned back to the TV, and chuckled. I wasn't sure why she did this, although I wasn't sure why Hanako did anything she did.

When I reached my room to search for a bathing suit- I realized that I only had a bikini I'd bought last year in effort to look more feminine. I'd never worn it, I didn't have the guts, and besides how lame would it look to show up at the beach alone? I groaned, wondering what I was going to do.

There was no way I was going to show up in a bikini.

I sat on the bed, and then glanced at my dresser across from me. Resting on it, nicely folded, was Toya's old t-shirt. I smiled.

I proceeded to put on the bikini, then Toya's t-shirt. I put my shorts I'd had on before back on, glanced at the mirror, and nodded. I went to the hall closet, grabbed an old towel, and made my made down the steps. I slipped my feet into an old pair of sandals and grabbed the door handle.

As I was leaving, I shouted goodbye to Hanako, and wondered what sort of things we'd do at the beach.

- - - - -

Since I had no idea where the beach was, I didn't bother to question why we'd been driving for a least a half an hour, but once Eriol began demanding which beach we were headed too, I became confused.

"I thought we were going to that beach just off West Road?" Eriol asked casually. Meilin, who was driving although we were in Syaoran's jeep, grinned. "Nah, it'd probably be too crowded."

"Like this car?" Eriol joked, and gave me a smile. He was right, the car was pretty stuffy. Meilin and Syaoran were situated up front, while me, Tomoyo and Eriol were all in the back.

"Oh well, at least we're all together," Tomoyo declared, and rested her head on Eriol's shoulder. I watched him gulp nervously, and couldn't help but wonder how on earth Tomoyo didn't know what she did to him. She must know to some extent- because she only ever flirted with him. I wondered if she liked him back.

It seemed as if Eriol was trying with all of his might not to have a heart attack, so I tried to calm him down by changing the subject. "So where exactly are we headed?" I inquired.

"You'll see." Meilin grinned deviously, and Syaoran looked back at me. His lips curled into a smile, and I felt like my stomach was going to catapult out my throat. The car then pulled off the highway onto a dirt road, and I turned away from Syaoran, not wanting him to see, from what I could tell, my red face.

We drove a few more miles, and suddenly Eriol squeaked. "What's wrong?" Tomoyo asked, who'd been resting on his shoulder the whole time and was quite surprised.

"TAKE ME BACK!" He demanded, shaking. He pressed his face against the window, and was groaning loudly.

"Oh shut it Eriol, it'd be a waste of gas to take you back now. We're almost there," Meilin grumbled, her lips pursed as if she knew this was going to happen.

"Honestly Eriol, I think it's time you really got over that fear of heights." Syaoran said. I suddenly became confused. What did going to the beach have to do with heights?

"Oh." Tomoyo sighed, as if it'd been painfully obvious. "I completely forgot about that." She pointed a finger against her temple and twisted it, as if trying to recollect something.

"There is no way I'm going to that place!" Eriol shouted. I spotted Meilin roll her eyes in the mirror. "Fine. You can sit at the top, while scorching to death and probably get eaten by a bear." Meilin chuckled menacingly, and Eriol gulped.

A few seconds later, the jeep halted to a stop. I looked around, trying to spot a beach, or at least a lake. "Where's the water? And…the people?" I asked, spotting only trees and wet moss. _This is sort of gross_, I thought while looking around at the mud.

"Welcome to Black Cove, Sakura!" Meilin grinned, and pulled the keys out of the jeep. She tossed them at Syaoran and hopped outside. The rest of us followed, although Eriol's legs were shaking.

Black Cove seemed to be in the middle of a patch of swamp, and due to the extremely tall trees surrounding it- it was relatively shaded. I could hear the faint sound of crickets humming, and there was an aroma of cigarette smoke in the air. I looked to my left and saw a few broken beer bottles that looked probably a few weeks old.

I looked right, and in a corner I spotted a sign placed on top of a tree branch. It was made of a slab of cardboard, and written in thick marker was 'M-CHAN, TOM-CHAN, WOLF-KUN AND ERI-CHAN'S SPOT. DO NOT TRESSPASS' and underneath, written in different handwriting was 'OR WE'LL WRING YOUR NECKS!' Next to the sign was what looked like a lamely made path.

I raised my eyebrows in confusion. "Guys, should we be here?" I asked yet another question. When I realized everyone (except Eriol, who was sitting on a rock, shaking) was stripping to their bathing suits, I became even more confused.

"Are we even in the right place?!" I became irritated, and came to the conclusion that every single one of them was crazy. "Calm down, Saku!" Tomoyo gleamed, throwing her t-shirt onto the ground. She fixed her bathing suit, and then approached Eriol. She whispered something to him I couldn't quite make out.

"This is our personal spot for swimming," Syaoran explained. "No one else knows about it." He pointed towards the cardboard sign. "M-chan is Meilin, Tom-chan is Tomoyo, Wolf-kun is me," he coughed, and I smiled. "And Eri-chan is Eriol." He chuckled.

"Okay, well, where's the water?" I asked, with my arms crossed. Meilin laughed, and Syaoran walked up to me. Suddenly, his hand grabbed mine. I felt like I was going to stop breathing.

"Over here," Syaoran whispered, giving me a mischievous look. Wait, what?

Without warning, he took off into a dash, pulling me along. My flip flops flung off in the process, and in a flash we'd reached the end of the patch of grass. Suddenly we were falling downwards, tumbling into what I wasn't sure.

"Syaoran!" I screamed, but I lost my breath when we were submerged in water. It was cold; I instinctively closed my eyes and panicked. I felt Syaoran tug onto my hand, and I suddenly was embraced by warmth. I opened my eyes.

I could see Syaoran; for he was so close I could sense his heartbeat. His arm was wrapped around me, and his body was grazing mine. His hand still gripped mine, and I clasped it tightly. His face; only an inch from mine, had an expression I couldn't quite place. His smile was warm, while his eyes looked into mine almost yearningly. I couldn't bring myself to surface, for I was mesmerized by him.

_He's beautiful._ I thought.

If it wasn't already painfully obvious, I suddenly knew that I must have had a crush on Syaoran. No, I couldn't just have a crush on him, no other crush I'd had made me feel so alive. From the moment I met him, Syaoran had put a spell on me. Syaoran had awoken me from the dead, where I thought I'd belonged. But that wasn't true- I belonged with people. With him.

Could I be in love with Syaoran Li?

I pulled myself closer to him, if that were possible. To my surprise, I was not rejected. Our chests were pressed together, and before I knew it our hands moved so we were completely wrapped in each other. I squeezed his neck, not wanting to let go.

His nose grazed mine accidentally, and suddenly I snapped out of it. Hell no! I wasn't in love! Not after a week and a half and definitely not after everything's that happened. My throat pained, seeking air, and I pushed Syaoran away. I kicked violently, pushing my body to surface.

I gasped for air, and soon Syaoran's head popped out too. He took a breath, but then put his nose and mouth back in. All I could see were his eyes, which were obviously confused. I felt awkward, knowing that I probably just ruined a moment, if it even was one.

I avoided his gaze, and looked upward. I saw that Black Cove was not only clearing but a cliff, which was about 30 meters high. I stared at it in awe. _Wow, that was a long way down_. I immediately understood why Eriol didn't want to be here. I turned around, and saw that the lake we were in was not exactly tiny, but not huge either.

Suddenly, a body came flying over the top and was plunging downward. I turned, and recognized it was Meilin, with her trailing hair and high-pitched scream. I scrambled out of the way, not wanting to be splashed by water.

After Meilin plunged in, she surfaced and turned to glance at Syaoran, who was now floating on his back, staring into the sky. I coughed awkwardly and asked Meilin what Eriol and Tomoyo were doing.

"They should be down here any moment." Meilin chuckled, and then swam over to Syaoran. She began conversing with him when I heard an extremely loud scream.

I looked up, only to find that they hadn't even jumped. Eriol was clinging to Tomoyo, and she was laughing hysterically. Meilin waved to Tomoyo, and she waved back.

Tomoyo then whispered something into Eriol's ear. He then scratched his head, and nodded. She took his hand, and then she ran into the air- Eriol being dragged behind. I laughed out loud; he was too funny.

Once they were in the water, and Eriol finally stopped shaking, we all started splashing around and playing games. Syaoran was sort of quiet, which I couldn't help but feel like it was my fault. Was I making him uncomfortable?

After we swam around for awhile, we decided we should all jump off again. Eriol protested to this, but ended up doing it anyway once Tomoyo convinced him.

The five of us bombarded off of the cliff, and I felt like I was flying. This time I was sure of what was going on- and tumbling through the air was exhilarating. I knew why these guys loved that place.

After about an hour or two the sun began to set, and we decided we would watch it go down from the top.

The sun was a soft, bright tangerine color. There was a soft breeze, and the faint cricket sound I'd heard earlier began to grow. I sighed, and turned towards Syaoran who was sitting next to me. He seemed entranced by the scenery. Or so I thought, because as soon as I looked at him his eyes glanced at mine.

"What?" He asked. He didn't sound angry; he didn't sound happy either. I shook my head. "Nothing," I mumbled, but I didn't think he heard me.

Meilin stood up and stretched her arms. "We should get ready to leave soon," she said to no one in particular, and Tomoyo nodded. She stood, pulling Eriol along as they were still holding hands.

The three began to walk to the jeep; Syaoran and I were alone. We sat for a moment while the others gathered their things. I wasn't expecting Syaoran to speak when all of a sudden,

"Would you like to do something with me tomorrow?"

I gasped. _Seriously?!_ My mind began to race.

I found myself nodding without even realizing I had. Oh god. I thought I'd decided that I didn't like Syaoran? Well, just because I wasn't in love with him didn't mean I couldn't like him. Who was I _kidding_?

_We could hang out_, I thought.

"Okay," Syaoran smiled. "We can take a walk around town, or something." I nodded again, with a jolt of excitement in my heart. He stood, and reached a hand out to help me get up. I took it, and he pulled me off my feet. For a moment, we stared into each other's eyes.

_We could_ totally_ hang out._

Suddenly, Eriol roared with laughter. We glanced behind at the others, and they were standing by the jeep. Meilin was staring at us, with a glare in her eye. Eriol seemed to be laughing at something Tomoyo had just said.

"I'm pretty sure Tomoyo agreed to go out with him." Syaoran said, shaking his head in amusement. "What?!" I said. When did I miss that? "Well what else do you think made him jump?" Syaoran laughed and I smiled.

We walked towards the jeep, and then we made our way.

- - - - -

After dropping off Eriol, Tomoyo and Meilin, Syaoran and I drove home. We played Truth along the way, and I came to the conclusion that I definitely hadn't made it awkward earlier.

Once we pulled into Hanako's driveway, I was overwhelmed with surprise. Actually, more like shock. Who I saw was probably the last person I'd expected to see in Tomoeda, of all places. I hadn't expected for him to be there, leaning over the fence of the front porch.

"Who the hell is this guy?" Syaoran snorted, seemingly annoyed. He was staring at me, and I knew that Syaoran knew I knew him (A/N: that's awfully confusing, sorry). Once I got out of the jeep, I slammed the door shut.

I ran towards the man, and I shouted his name. "Sakura!" he exclaimed, and ran off to porch. I met him halfway and poured myself into his arms. He lifted me high into the air, and he squeezed me tightly. As we were hugging, he made a comment about my shirt. I laughed, although I wasn't sure if I should do that or cry.

I heard the jeep door slam, and he put me down. I turned to look at Syaoran, who was leaning against his car, with a look that screamed death.

The man looked down at me, with a hand resting on my shoulder. "Who is this boy, Sakura?" he asked.

"Uh, well, this is Syaoran." I said, and Syaoran rolled his eyes. "And Syaoran, this is someone very important to me. This is Yukito Tsukishiro."

- - - - -

**I'm terrible at cliff hangers. **


	8. Unrequited Factuation

**If there's more typos or mistakes than usual this chapter, I'm very sorry. I just got a new laptop (which likely means I'll be updating more, yay!) and I'm still getting used to the keyboard.  
Please bear with me, haha. Another note about updating- I finally figured out exactly how this story is going to end. I'm probably going to have about 14-15 chapters. After I'm done, I'll probably start some other fic, although I'm thinking about trying another fandom. Perhaps FMA. I don't know, haha! **

**By the way, I would just like to say thank you very much for all of the reviews/favourites/alerts. It makes my heart leap every single time I receive an email from , and I would just like to express how happy it makes me that all of you take the time to read my writing. I love you! **

**Enough mushy stuff, onto the chapter! Lulz**

**Chapter 8: Reunions**

Syaoran scuffed his foot against the dirt grouchily; I began to wonder why. What was wrong with _him_ all of a sudden? He'd been fine the whole car ride! Perhaps it was Yukito? No, it couldn't be. Actually, it could...

"I'm very pleased to meet you, Mr. Syaoran, if I may call you that." Yukito bowed in a polite demeanour. I watched his silver hair fall into his face as he stood up straight. His lips curled into a smile and I turned back at Syaoran. He glanced at me, although only for a moment - I wasn't sure if I should quiver in fear or start crying. If looks could kill, I would've dropped dead. I coughed. Awkward much?

"So, uh..." I felt uncomfortable, unsure if I should shed some light onto the situation, but I didn't know what I was supposed to say, or whom to. I got the feeling Yukito had become offended at Syaoran's periodic glares and grunts, but it was the glares and grunts that had me worried. "Um, Syaoran- Yukito is actually, he's my, uh," I choked out words, and from the way it sounded I wasn't going to form a proper sentence anytime soon. So then Yukito, as if to save the day, did.

"I was Sakura's late brother's best friend, among other titles." Syaoran cocked an eyebrow out of surprise, and I sighed. Was it just me, or had it suddenly become even _more_ awkward? Yukito looked down at me with the same grin of his I'd missed for so long, although it didn't ease the atmosphere the way it used to.

I know I've said that I've only ever had a few crushes before, and I guess it was true to an _extent_...but I've been head over heels for Yukito Tsukishiro from the moment I met him. That is also saying something because I was seven at the time.

I've neglected to speak of Yukito because my 'crush' is still sort of a soft spot for me, and kind of embarrassing. It was right after mom passed when Toya brought a friend from school over to help babysit me; I'd been expecting that Toya's friend would be just as much of a jerk as he was, and as soon as the two walked into the door I huffed brattishly. Toya scowled me for being rude, but when the strange silver haired boy knelt down just to smile at me face-to-face, I was sold. Before even knowing his name, I had decided who I was going to _marry_.

Now usually, pre-pubescent school girl crushes last anywhere around five hours to five weeks. But not my love for Yukito; I had my heart set on him. He and Toya became best friends, which meant Yukito was over at the apartment a lot, even after we moved across town. Soon enough, I made it my goal to know everything about him. I knew of Yukito's odd food obsession, his favourite sport, whether or not he had a girlfriend. The more I got to know him over the years, my crush morphed into something bigger. I tried my best to hide it, but Toya never neglected teasing me about it. I just couldn't help myself! Yukito was so kind and good-hearted, and not to mention the personification of gorgeous.

Perfect, in itself, cannot really be defined. Nobody in the history of the world has ever been perfect, and before you throw that Jesus crap at me, I'll let you know I never believed in religion. But, thanks to some very stimulating hormones, Yukito Tsukishiro, in my mind, was perfect (for me, anyway).

Fast forward a few years; Toya and Yukito are heading off to college. I was devastated when I found out they wouldn't both be attending Tokyo U, and that Yukito was heading out of town. A few nights before he left, Yukito hugged me for the first time. He whispered into my ear that he'd visit as much as possible and that I shouldn't be afraid to put Toya in his place if he kept calling me monster.

Surprisingly, even though I didn't see him as often, my feelings for Yukito didn't fade. He stopped by every few weeks, and he always brought some sort of weird food product we couldn't get in the city. He was always welcomed into our home though, which was nice. I guess you could really say that Yukito has been a part of the family since the moment him and Toya became friends.

After Toya and Yuki graduated from college, they moved into an apartment together close to mine and Dad's. After that, they would always be over to the apartment, and when they weren't, I would be over to theirs.

The afternoon of the accident, Toya had been helping Dad with groceries. Yukito hadn't come because he had a cold.

I had expected that Yukito would take me in after they died, but for some reason when Monoke (A/N: neighbour lady if you don't remember) asked him he refused. This had confused me, but I barely remember exactly how I felt because those few weeks are still a blur. Anyway, the last time I ever saw Yukito was at Toya and Dad's funeral. Which is sort of baffling, because I have no idea why he was here now.

"Well, that's nice." Syaoran hissed with heavy sarcasm. I knew this wasn't going anywhere good; I looked at Yukito pleadingly, and he smiled. We stood in silence a moment, until Syaoran mumbled something about heading inside, and I watched him shuffle past us quickly. He slammed the door behind him.

"Ahem," I coughed awkwardly, and then Yukito burst out laughing. What on earth? I peeked up at him and it was like he couldn't stop. He clutched his stomach and hurled up giggles (A/N: sounds sexy huh? **Hurled **up giggles. Haha. ). "Are you alright?" I asked and he forced himself to stop. "He's a nice boy," Yukito smiled even bigger, if possible, and I raised an eyebrow. I seemed to have forgotten how confusing Yukito could be. Speaking of confusing, why on earth was he here? Why after so long?

I crossed my arms, trying to look serious. "Why are you here?" I forced myself to sound stern, but it came out sounding sort of like a whimpering puppy. Yukito bent down to look at me face to face, and a smile escaped my lips. _Darn it, _so much for stern and serious.

"I just missed you is all, Sakura." Yukito clutched my hand. I almost felt my legs break; with Yukito so close I could smell his after shave. Wow.

Before you start spazzing out on me, yes, I do realize this is suspicious. Yukito refused to see me after Toya died, and all of a sudden he just missed me? However, Yukito has always been a good person, and there's no legitimate reason for anyone to question his motives. There's no way I could just start throwing accusations at him for no reason! Right?

"So what do you say we spend the day together tomorrow? I saw an aquarium just outside of town on the way here. We could go if you don't have plans..?" Yukito said with heavy enthusiasm. I knew for a fact that Yukito was a fan of sea world and other such attractions. Without thinking twice, I accepted the chance to go out on a 'date' Yukito (yes, I realize he's in his twenties and I'm only sixteen. I can only dream). "Of course!" I grinned. "Awesome!" Yukito exclaimed while standing up straight. "They have free ice cream, too!"

I sighed; of course food would be involved.

Yukito hugged me once more before gliding across the lawn. He bid goodbye as he yelled that he would be over to get me at around 9AM. I watched him get into his car across the street, and as I waved to him I forgot about the plans I'd made with the brown eyed boy watching from the basement window.

When I woke the next morning at 7AM, my eyelids felt like a thousand pounds. Insomnia had kicked in - I'd been tossing and turning the whole night- probably brought on from the excitement of seeing Yukito the next morning. Would it be weird? It probably wouldn't, it hadn't been the night before (that is, after Syaoran left). Why would it change? There were lots of answers I could use for this, but my palms were getting sweaty just at the thought.

I got ready as fast as I could, which was a stupid thing to do because by the time I was finished it was no later than quarter after. _Fuck, _I thought. What was I supposed to do in the meantime?

I ended up gathering thoughts about Yukito more, which ended up making my palms soaking wet! However, I was too busy imagining Yukito and I on our first 'date', confessing our undying love for each other to notice, though. I know it sounds pathetic, but what was I supposed to do? Yukito was the only thing I ever liked about my old life besides Toya and Dad. Now that he was back, I felt almost like I was grasping back onto the comfort I once had.

When the long anticipated knock on the door finally came, it was 8:58. I jolted out of my bed, eager to be the first at the door. How embarrassing would it be if Hanako answered the door? In her ratty, practically see through nightgown, no less?

I threw open the door, almost too drastically because Yukito nearly fell inside when the door jagged open. He looked shocked, but he was smiling no doubt. I grinned.

"Hi!" I said giddily, knowing that I sounded more like the bimbos in Tokyo I dreaded more than ever. Yukito didn't seem to care, because his lip curl didn't break. "You ready to go?" He asked, looking me up and down. "Yep! I just got to let Hanako know I'm leaving," I even surprised myself that I'd managed to remember that I should tell Hanako I wouldn't be at the house all day. After I'd got in the house last night, I was in such a daze that I ignored her pleas and questionnaire about the cute boy who asked to wait on the veranda until I'd got home.

I found some paper and a pen and scribbled that I was going to the aquarium and that'd I'd be home by dinnertime. I even squiggled a heart right before I signed my name (all of these lovey-dovey thoughts about Yuki were really making me act weird, huh?).

After I got into Yukito's car, I was overwhelmed with the all too familiar scent of my brother, even almost seven months after he left. I couldn't quite describe the feeling it gave me, whether I enjoyed the smell or I became depressed over it, I didn't know. Once Yukito had the engine running, he grinned at me yet again. I sighed and smiled back, still unsure of what was to come.

During the drive to the aquarium, Yukito asked me about life in Tomoeda and how I liked it. I told him it was alright, and that I think I might've been making friends for the first time. This he was ecstatic over, and couldn't express enough enthusiasm. He prompted me to tell him about as much as I could about the Rush Hour crew, so I tried my best. I made sure to mention Eriol's acrophobia, Meilin's snacking obsession and Tomoyo's bedroom walls. I didn't say much about Syaoran, except that he lived with Hanako. I lied and said I didn't know much about him. I still have no clue why I did this.

When I asked about Yukito's life back in Tokyo, he seemed uneasy. I then shut up, because obviously it was a touchy subject. I wondered what it was like living alone in the apartment they used to share. Had he moved? Did he ever think about it? I didn't have the guts to ask.

After at least an hour of driving, we finally got to the aquarium. It hadn't been open long, so there weren't very many people. We parked in an open space, and made our way inside.

"Wow that was fantastic! I've never seen so many awesome fish before!" Yuki gleamed, while pulling out a dining chair for me. It was around 1:30PM, and we took a break from fish-seeing to eat at the in-aquarium diner, which was partly because of my begging. It was extremely odd behaviour for Yukito to not want to eat, but I guess the fish were making him distracted.

"And I can't believe more than half are native to these oceans! You're so lucky Sakura that you live in a beach town," Yuki commented, situating himself in his own seat across from me. On impulse I rolled my eyes, a habit whenever someone compliments Tomoeda. I've been getting better at it, however this time it slipped. Yukito didn't seem to notice, because he kept blabbing (about speckled fish or something). I was only half-listening, because I had my eyes concentrated on a waiter two tables away.

I jumped in my seat when another waiter, err waitress actually, approached our table on the other side. In a bored voice she asked what we wanted, and Yukito began to spiel about three quarters of the things on the menu. I admired him as I waited for him to finish.

"Also, some of your wonderful complimentary ice cream!"

I laughed as I ordered, giddy by his enthusiasm about frozen milk product. I ordered a burger, and then the waitress asked if I wanted some ice cream too. "Yes, she does!" Yukito grinned, and the woman just chuckled under her breath. "I'll be back in a minute," she said as she took away our menus and left.

We sat in silence for a moment. Yukito then rested his chin on his hand, and gazed in my direction. I avoided his eyes, unsure of what he was thinking. What was he thinking?

"You really are something, you know." He revealed, and I twitched. My head whipped back in his direction. "W-what?"

"The guy who gets you is going to be extremely lucky," Yukito spoke quieter this time, almost in a whisper. I probably wouldn't have heard him if I wasn't concentrating.

People surrounded us, enveloped in laughter and sound. Every other table in the diner was completely alive, and ours remained silent. I couldn't stand it, but I didn't have the right words. Here he was, the love of my life, talking about how lucky a guy would be to have me, whereas if he asked, in a second I'd be in his arms.

The waitress returned with our drinks, and Yukito began to sip his nonchalantly.

The image of us together became center of my mind. The world around me slowed, as I stared at Yukito. The thought of me and him stuck; every possibility wavering in its potential reality. Most of them were dreamland-esque, which was probably why they drove me to do it.

My throat cleared of all clogging, and I all of a sudden didn't feel nervous anymore. I couldn't sense the sweatiness of my palms.

"Yukito, I love you!"

Yukito peered up at me, with a sense of knowing in his eyes.

It was that moment when all of that confidence fell away into oblivion.

I could tell, just from his expression. Yukito knew.

He knew?

He placed his water on the table and swallowed. His calm face was soft and sweet, and as his lips curled ever-so slightly, although not in amusement or pity. The humiliation was dawning onto me. I felt my face burn, and to hide my face I looked down. The last bit of fearlessness that remained seemed to creep its way out of my mouth.

"I...always have. Ever since the day we first met."  
"Sakura."  
"No! You were always one of the people who understood me, Yukito. You were kind to me when nobody else was. I've fell in love with you because of that!"

Yukito's facial expression changed completely. His eyes fell sad, and I had absolutely no idea what was coming next. He stared at his lap, with his head held down. He appeared shamed, although there was no reason why he should.

"I don't want to seem like I'm talking down to you when I say this, Sakura. You are no less of an adult than I am, and I want you to know that. However, hear me out when I say that you aren't in love with me."

Those words cut like a knife.

"Sakura, can you honestly tell me that I crossed your mind more than once since you've moved here?"  
No. "Yes."  
"Don't lie."

Those words felt like acid rain.

"If you were truly in love with me," Yukito looked back at me now. I gasped quietly; he had moisture filling up his eyes. "I would be on your mind _every_ second. I would never leave your thoughts. I would _always_ be there, whether you're awake or in your dreams. I would remain in your heart, well after I've... gone. I would be the person you turn to for everything, because your desperate need for my presence is indescribable. You'd have this constant need to make me happy, and even if I was, you would still feel like it wasn't good enough... because nothing," Yukito inhaled and exhaled. I could tell he was desperately trying to hold it back. The sadness was welling up inside, and I couldn't do a thing. "Nothing would be good enough for me."

The sight of tears falling down Yuki's porcelain face almost brought me to the same situation. While my utter confusion was overloaded, I only wanted to comfort him. Whether I was in love or not.

"I..."  
"Sakura. Even if you do like me, I cannot accept your confession. There's somebody else I'm in love with, and while I can't even be with them, that doesn't change anything,"

I was in shock. Yukito was in love with somebody? But how? When? He only ever spent time with Toya. He was only ever with Toya.

Then it all made sense.

"You're in love with my brother, aren't you?" I asked, in a soft voice. Yukito sniffed (cutely, I'll add, but that's a little inappropriate considering the situation) and let a smile slip. While it was not a huge smile, I could tell it was honest.

Then, he told me everything.

I don't really know why I never saw it before. Toya and Yukito were always together, happily in their own world. They laughed and sang together while doing pretty much everything. The little things, such as making dinner for one another or a slight touch of the hand. My brother and his best friend were in love.

Afterwards, Yukito explained to me that my father knew of his and Toya's relationship, but they decided not to let me know because everybody was aware of my feelings for Yuki (I'm very unobvious, aren't I?) and they thought it might hurt my feelings. Yukito also explained that the reason why he never wanted to see me after Toya died was because he knew that when he saw me he'd just see Toya, and at the time he said he was just as much of a wreck as I was. I couldn't possibly see the image of Yukito lying in bed all day, doing nothing but cry, hour after hour, like he said. But what happened, happened.

After our talk, we ate quickly and decided to go home. It was already almost 3, and with afternoon traffic it'd take way longer to get back.

Surprisingly enough, on the way back it wasn't awkward at all. I didn't feel the need to impress Yukito anymore, and we just talked. We reminisced about all of the good times. While it was hard for the both of us, we knew that we just needed to speak about it. Yukito told stories about Toya he'd never told, such as the first time Toya tried to make a special anniversary dinner and almost burnt the apartment down. I laughed at the thought, and it wasn't weird for me to imagine my brother desperately trying to cook for his boyfriend and failing.

As soon as we arrived back at Hanako's, it was quarter to 5. I stretched as I proceeded to take off my seatbelt. Yukito was already out of the car, opening the door for me when I finished. After I got out, we stood for a moment. Then, Yukito grasped onto me. He held me close, and I closed my eyes.

I didn't feel a yearning for him, or a deep sadness. I felt nothing but friendship and love.

"You keep your chin up, okay Sakura?" he whispered, and I nodded slowly. "You're doing great here, I can tell. You are so much happier."  
I chuckled at the thought, but kept it to myself. Perhaps I was happier.

Yukito let go, and grinned hugely. "Also, that Syaoran boy totally loves you."

"Eh?" I squeaked in embarrassment. "What are you saying? Who told you that?" I plead. Yukito just laughed, and told me that it was obvious, but I shouldn't worry about it. "Just let things flow, it'll work out."

He squeezed me quickly once more, then bid his goodbye. "I'll visit again soon. I promise. I really do miss you, Sakura." He said, and I nodded. "I miss you too, Yuki."

He slid into his car and drove off. I stood on the curb for a moment, before I ran back inside because the mosquitos were attacking me.

Preview for next chapter:

_Hanako asks Sakura to run a quick errand back to Rush Hour before closing time. She accepts, but accidentally overhears a conversation between Meilin, Eriol and Tomoyo she probably shouldn't. Syaoran likes Sakura? What's this about him asking her out to his birthday?  
Read along as the plot thickens in chapter 9. _

**GAAAAH! This chapter took the longest ever! I don't know why, but Yukito was pretty boring to write. Even while I seriously love him and his character, but I made him completely OOC and kind of annoying (gomenasai! gomen, gomen, gomen!). I tried to make the love confession as emotional as possible, but it turned out like crap. I'm so sorry. But the chapters from here on end are going to be fantastic, I promise. Don't give up on me just yet. Please, haha. **

**Review! I live for them! Days to write... seconds to review... ~!**


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